Matt Carthy
Ceist:
176. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence further to Parliamentary Question No. 14 of 17 October 2024, if his Department has compiled a list of the functions formally provided by the Defence Forces that his Government has outsourced since 2020. [45251/24]
Amharc ar fhreagra
As stated in my reply to Parliamentary Question No 14 of 17 October 2024, I have requested the Defence Forces to provide information on the functions formally performed by members of the Defence Forces which have been outsourced since 2020. Preliminary data has been prepared, however, further analysis is required before a final answer can be provided. It is hoped to issue a reply to the Deputy in the near future.
The following deferred reply was received under Standing Order 51.
The Defence Forces have now provided the following instances of such outsourcing :-
Army
- Specialised ordnance instructors have been brought in to temporarily support the delivery of instruction to students of the Ordnance School.
- A number of Communications & Information Systems functions have being outsourced, with technical support being provided in various areas.
- A private company has been contracted to undertake PDF and RDF occupational and induction Part 2 medicals.
- Some of the maintenance and upkeep of certain Defence Force Installations has been contracted out to private companies.
Air Corps
- Second line maintenance for certain aircraft types has been outsourced, including where additional maintenance support is required.
- Outsourced technician support has been obtained to provide technical support to the Air Corps.
- Flight Operations – some Ministerial Air Transport Service Charter flights and PC9M Flight Line Support (Ramp Operations) have been outsourced.
- Flight Training – certain ab initio pilot training has been undertaken externally.
- Certain technician training has been outsourced.
Naval Service
- Outsourced civilian technician support have been utilised across the Naval Service due to shortages of Defence Forces qualified personnel.
- The maintenance of certain ships’ main engines and propulsion systems has been enhanced and outsourced, through an Optimised Maintenance contract.
- The maintenance of various other Naval Service equipment, including diving equipment and RHIB (small boat) maintenance has been outsourced.
- Due to a shortage of qualified technicians, certain training courses/modules in the Naval College have been outsourced.
The recruitment and retention challenges in the Defence Forces are acknowledged. However, the Government have allocated record levels of expenditure to the Defence sector and have taken a number of initiatives as part of the ongoing programme to address these challenges. There have been significant improvements in the pay and conditions of the Defence Forces over recent years, including providing for the full impacts of the National Pay Agreement in the increased Defence Forces Pay allocation provided recently in Budget 2025.
In addition, private secondary healthcare is now available to all members of the PDF, the mandatory retirement age has increased to 62, there has been significant enhancements to the Naval Service Patrol Duty allowance and the Naval Service tax credit has been extended for a further five years.
The situation continues to remain challenging, however, these measures and others are slowly starting to deliver and signs of stabilisation are beginning to emerge.
