John Brady
Question:391. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Defence the current number of women in the Defence Forces by rank; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51598/22]
View answerTuesday, 18 October 2022
Questions (391, 392, 393)
John Brady
Question:392. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Defence the current number of women in the Defence Forces who are currently serving overseas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51599/22]
View answerJohn Brady
Question:393. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Defence the number of women members of the Defence Forces who have left in 2022, by month; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51600/22]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 391, 392 and 393 together.
As at 31 August 2022, the latest date for which figures are available, the strength of female personnel in the Permanent Defence Force stood at 579, of whom 28 were serving overseas.
The requested breakdown, by rank, of the 579 female PDF personnel is as follows:
|
OFFICER |
LT GEN |
MAJ GEN |
BRIG GEN |
COL |
LT COL |
COMDT |
CAPT |
LT |
|
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
58 |
51 |
53 |
|
|
OTHER RANKS |
SM |
BQMS |
CS |
CQMS |
SGT |
CPL |
PTE |
CADET |
|
0 |
0 |
5 |
8 |
66 |
103 |
227 |
4 |
As of 31st August 2022, 36 females had been discharged from the PDF.
|
Month |
Jan. |
Feb. |
March |
April |
May |
June |
July |
Aug. |
|
Discharges |
2 |
6 |
14 |
3 |
0 |
4 |
5 |
2 |
Typically, discharges include personnel who leave for a variety of reasons including on age grounds, at end of contract and voluntary discharges and would also include any trainees who exited prior to completion of their initial training.
In line with current policies and commitments, and the recommendations of the Commission on the Defence Forces, a number of initiatives are in place with a view to increasing the level of female participation in the Defence Forces. Additionally, special consideration is paid to women as a target group for recruitment within the general recruitment framework.
I remain committed to maximising recruitment and retention of personnel, both male and female, to maintain the capacity of the Defence Forces to operate effectively across all roles, to undertake the tasks laid down by Government.
Question No. 392 answered with Question No. 391.
Question No. 393 answered with Question No. 391.