Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 18 January 2023
648. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence if he will consider allowing all trained technicians to extend their retirement age beyond 60 years, given the level of training acquired in this field. [1453/23]
View answerMilitary life places unique demands on individuals and it is necessary that Defence Forces personnel are prepared to meet the challenges of all military operations. To this end, it is vital the age and health profile of personnel be such as to ensure that operational capability and effectiveness are not compromised in any way. For this reason compulsory retirement ages for ranks in the Permanent Defence Force are considerably lower than in other employments.
The White Paper on Defence (2015), provides that: “retirement ages and/or upper service limits of Defence Forces’ personnel of all ranks will continue to be kept under review and determined in accordance with key considerations such as manpower policy requirements, operational needs and international best practice”.
There are no plans at this stage to extend the mandatory retirement ages for enlisted personnel beyond 60 years of age.
