Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 29 November 2017
550. Deputy Lisa Chambers asked the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of persons serving in the Reserve Defence Force; and the estimated full-year cost of increasing the numbers to 3,000, 3,500, 4,000, 4,500, 5,000 and to 5,500, respectively. [51161/17]
View answerThe White Paper on Defence sets out a developmental path for the Reserve Defence Force (RDF). It provides that the overarching establishment of the Army Reserve (AR) and Naval Service Reserve (NSR) will be 4,169 personnel, consisting of 3,869 Army Reservists and the expansion of the establishment of the four NSR Units from currently 200 personnel to 300.
The current total strength for the Reserve Defence Force is 1,856 effective personnel and subhead A5 provides for a budget €2.115 million for paid training and it is estimated that the costs of reaching the full strength would require an additional paid training budget of approximately €2.5 million.
Providing for numbers beyond the current establishment would require consideration of the capability requirements underpinning such an increase and an assessment of the associated cost implications. The Department does not retain such costings.
