Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 18 September 2024
111. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence the establishment figure of the Defence Forces and Reserve Defence Forces; the number currently enlisted/commissioned; the number who have been discharged in the past 12 months; the number who have been recruited, by service branch; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36914/24]
View answerThe military authorities have provided the requested information as set out in the following two tables:
Table A contains the establishment strength for the Permanent Defence Force (PDF) and Reserve Defence Force (RDF); the current PDF strength and the current RDF effective strength as of 31 August 2024 – in total and also broken down by Officer and Enlisted strength. Also included are the number of PDF and RDF discharges that took place between 1 September 2023 and 31 August 2024.
Table A
|
- |
Total PDF |
Total RDF |
|
Establishment Strength |
9,600 |
4,069 |
|
Total Strength as at 31/08/2024 |
7,426 |
1,553 |
|
Officer Strength as at 31/08/2024 |
1,238 |
240 |
|
Enlisted Strength as at 31/08/2024 |
6,188 |
1,313 |
|
Discharges 1/09/2023 – 31/08/2024 |
720 |
110 |
Table B provides the number of PDF and RDF inductions that took place between 1 September 2023 and 31 August 2024, in total and also broken down by branch.
|
- |
Total PDF |
Total RDF |
|
Army Inductions |
381 |
234 |
|
Air Corps Inductions |
64 |
N/A |
|
Naval Service Inductions |
89 |
25 |
|
Total Inductions (1/09/2023 – 31/08/2024) |
534 |
259 |
The staffing challenges in the Permanent Defence Force have been acknowledged previously. Current recruitment initiatives underway to counter these staffing challenges include ongoing recruitment of General Service Recruits and Direct Entry specialists in addition to the recruitment of Cadets, the expansion of the scope of such recruitment, the progression of the recommendations from a recent external validation of the Defence Forces recruitment process, engagement of a marine specialist recruitment body and the establishment of a Joint Induction Training Centre in Gormanstown.
Additionally, a range of financial and non-financial retention initiatives are being implemented. These include the doubling of the Naval Service Patrol Duty allowance, the further extension of the Naval Service tax credit, and the extension of the provision of private secondary healthcare to all members of the PDF, in addition to significant progress on pay.
In an effort to remove all potential obstacles to recruiting and retaining personnel, the Government agreed increases in the upper recruitment and mandatory retirement age in the PDF with comparable increases in the RDF.
In respect of the Reserve Defence Force, the immediate focus of the Office of Reserve Affairs has been the development of a Regeneration Plan in addition to increasing recruitment into the RDF by streamlining the recruitment process. The RDF Regeneration and Development Plan, launched on 24 July 2024, contains a number of actions concerning the recruitment, resourcing and bolstering of the RDF.
