Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 September 2014
18. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Defence his assessment of the social and economic impact of the decision to disband the Fourth Western Brigade; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34570/14]
View answerFollowing the comprehensive review of expenditure in 2011, the Government decided to stabilise the strength ceiling of the Permanent Defence Force (PDF) at 9,500 personnel. The Minister for Defence was faced with a choice of retaining the three Brigade Army structure (which was designed in the 1990’s for an overall PDF of 11,500 personnel), or re-organising the PDF to reflect the actual achievable strength level of 9,500 personnel. The structure intended for a strength ceiling of 11,500 personnel was an ill fit for a strength ceiling of 9,500 personnel. Its retention would have been inefficient, leading to under-strength Units and the retention of headquarters and administrative structures intended for a much larger force. Clearly this was not a viable option.
In this context, the Minister for Defence initiated a major re-organisation of the Defence Forces encompassing the consolidation of three under-strength Army Brigades into two full strength Brigades. This was to ensure that within the revised strength ceiling, the operational effectiveness of the Permanent Defence Force was optimised in order to fulfil all roles assigned by Government.
Key aspects of the reorganisation included the consolidation of under-strength units into a smaller number of full strength Units, a reduction in the number of headquarters and the associated re-deployment of personnel from administrative and support functions to operational Units.
The re-organisation within a stabilised strength ceiling of 9,500 personnel did not require any job losses as this strength level is the same that existed when the current Government took up office in 2011. I have seen no evidence that supports any contention that the re-organisation has led to any significant adverse economic or social impact.
The current organisational structures are based on recommendations made by the then Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces and the then Secretary General of the Department. I am confident that the current structures contribute to optimising the capacity of the Permanent Defence Force to deliver the required operational outputs, within the available resources. This remains one of my key objectives as Minister for Defence.
