Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 23 April 2026
302. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Defence whether any high-level, non-operational summaries of capability gap assessments relating to Air Corps platforms have been produced since 2020; and if so, whether such summaries can be provided in aggregate form [29314/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs Minister for Defence, I am deeply committed to the transformation of the Defence Forces into a modern fit for purpose organisation to defend the State and meet the challenges of today and the future.
The Commission on the Defence Forces identified capability gaps in the Irish Defence Forces through a review process carried out between December 2020 and February 2022. The Commission combined policy analysis, consultations, site visits and comparative benchmarking to reach its conclusions. The Commission made a wide range of recommendations to fill capability gaps, which was accepted by the Government in the approved move to “Level of Ambition 2” as set out in the capability framework devised by the Commission.
One of the key recommendations from the Commission on the Defence Forces was to implement a top down capability development planning process (CDPP) to bring planning for Defence Forces capabilities in line with best practice. This is a three phase process. The first phase, called the upstream phase, identifies capability needs. The second phase, the midstream phase, develops the capability requirements in detail. The third and final phase, the downstream phase, is where the capabilities are acquired and sustained.
In early 2023 a Capability Development Unit was established in the Department. It is civil/military in terms of staffing, with military staff from across the three services of the Defence Forces, providing an overarching joint perspective to capability planning. The Unit is now well established and in the final stages of the upstream phase, the key output of which is a 12 year Capability Development Programme, that will identify, at a high level, the capability requirements for the Defence Forces out to 2040. This ongoing piece of work, once complete, will inform the prioritisation of capabilities the Defence Forces will progress in moving towards the strategic level of ambition set out in the Defence Policy Review, and the objectives as set out in the recently published Strategic Framework and Update to the Detailed Implementation Plan for the Commission on the Defence Forces. The Capability Development Programme will be finalised and published in 2026, however as the Deputy will appreciate, the assessment of capabilities and summarised capability gaps are highly sensitive and are not releasable in the interests of national security.
