Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 13 November 2014
19. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Defence the number of occasions that members of the Defence Forces have been called to undertake aid to the civil power ATCP duties at Dublin, Cork, and Shannon airports, respectively, in the past 12 months; and the way these operations are funded. [41264/14]
View answerAn Garda Síochána has the primary responsibility for law and order, including the protection of the internal security of the State. Among the roles assigned to the Defence Forces is the provision of Aid to the Civil Power (ATCP) which, in practice, means to assist An Garda Síochána when requested to do so. There is ongoing and close liaison between An Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces regarding security matters. The Defence Forces were not deployed in an ATCP role to Dublin or Cork airports during the period in question. There were 362 ATCP deployments carried out by the Defence Forces to Shannon Airport during the 12 month period from the 6th November 2013 to the 6th of November 2014. The length of each such deployment and the number of relevant aircraft that land and take off during each deployment can vary. For example, if a single aircraft is on the ground for an extended period, perhaps overnight, or over a number of days, this would involve more than one deployment of troops as each shift is generally of 12 hours duration.
The costs of these operations, which include Security Duty Allowance, rations and fuel, are met from the Defence Vote.
