In July 2022, the Government approved a move to Level of Ambition 2 (LOA2), as recommended by the Commission on the Defence Forces. As part of that decision the Government committed to increasing the Defence budget from €1.1 billion to €1.5 billion by 2028, as part of the annual budgetary process. This level of investment will allow for the required transformation and investment in recruitment, equipment and infrastructure that was identified by the Commission as necessary to meet the State’s defence and security needs.
The Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery & Reform are responsible for overall public expenditure policy and strategy. The annual Defence budget allocation is determined within the overarching budgetary framework outlined each year by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery & Reform, and approved by Dáil Eireann having regard to the level of resources available and defence policy requirements. It is within this context that the annual Defence budget, for 2024 and subsequent years, will be determined, with the estimates process for 2024 currently underway.
For 2023, the total overall gross allocation provided to the Defence Vote Group, as set out in Budget 2023, is €1.21 billion, comprising of over €915 million on the Defence Vote and over €294 million on the Army Pensions Vote. This significant allocation represents an overall increase of €93 million on 2022 and comprises of an increase of €35 million in the capital allocation and €58 million in the current allocation across the Vote Group. Vote 36 - Defence is managed through a single programme with all operational outputs delivered from a single set of forces encompassing the Army, Air Corps and Naval Service. Accordingly, my Department does not allocate funding by domain.
The Defence Forces undertake a broad range of services in accordance with their primary security role. In addition, they also undertake a diverse range of non-security related tasks, provide critical supports to An Garda Síochána and support other Government Departments and Principal Response Agencies in responding to any extreme weather or other emergency events that can arise at any stage.
I am committed to ensuring that the personnel of the Defence Forces are equipped and trained to the highest attainable standards to facilitate an efficient, effective response to any national emergencies that arise and I can confirm that the Defence Forces keep their operational plans and response capabilities for dealing with a wide range of threats and emergencies under constant review.
The significant funding of €1.21 billion allocated to Defence in Budget 2023 enables the Defence Forces to provide an ongoing, flexible and effective response to a wide range of operational challenges, both at home and overseas and I remain satisfied that the Defence Forces will continue to respond in an effective and timely manner to requests for support from other Government Departments and Principal Response Agencies.
