Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 January 2026
673. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the steps his Department is taking to address concerns related to the roll out of the new computer aided dispatch system to Dublin Fire Brigade; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6468/26]
View answerThe provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and the provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Services Act, 1981 & 2003. My Department supports fire authorities through setting general policy, providing a central training programme, issuing guidance on operational and other related matters and providing capital funding support for equipment and priority infrastructural projects. Fire service issues are managed in my Department by the National Directorate for Fire & Emergency Management (NDFEM).
The National Mobilisation and Communications System (NMACS) is operated by Limerick City & County Council; it provides a national platform for fire-related emergency calls on a shared service basis. My Department provides capital funding to Limerick City & County Council to support the development and rollout of the NMACS programme for fire-related emergency calls.
The NMACS command and control platform is now live in both the Munster Regional Communications Centre (MRCC) and the Western Regional Communications Centre (WRCC), having replaced older legacy systems. NMACS is a new generation command and control system providing higher levels of resilience and technical capability, with significant new, modern technology available to call takers to provide a better service to the public.
Fire Service staff in all regions have been fully engaged, on an ongoing basis, in the project, throughout its development, procurement and implementation in the Munster and Western Regions as well as the planned migration in the Eastern region. Staff representing each of the three regional communication centres have participated in all phases of testing and development, meeting regularly and working closely with the NMACS team.
SIPTU notified a dispute to Dublin City Council (DCC) June 2025. This dispute has delayed the NMACS programme rollout in the East Region. The WRC intervened to resolve this dispute and following conciliation, the dispute was referred to the Labour Court. The Labour Court issued a number of recommendations 12 January 2026 aiming to resolve the issues raised by SIPTU. SIPTU have recommended acceptance of the Labour Court’s recommendations and are conducting a ballot of their members.
I would encourage both sides to continue to actively engage with a view to coming to a positive conclusion on this issue.
