2026-07-02

In April and May, members of the Irish Defence Forces' 1st Armoured Cavalry Squadron travelled to the Fort Benning in the US, where they achieved historic success at the 2026 Sullivan Cup, becoming the first non-American team to win the competition since it began in 2012, and this while using fighting vehicles with which they had no previous familiarity. We frequently speak here of the pride we have in the Defence Forces, but this is yet another example of how the men and women of the Irish Defence Forces continue to distinguish themselves internationally. I come, as the Tánaiste knows, from a constituency where the Defence Forces are at the heart of every aspect of our community. I have watched as the strength of our Defence Forces has declined over the past decade or more, and while recognising something of a stabilisation and upturn in recruitment in recent years, I have to say that I am profoundly concerned at the current strength of our forces, standing, as it does, at just 7,741 personnel across the three services - Army, Naval Service and Air Corps. It is a disappointment that, as we take the EU Presidency and rightly commit to spending more on defence, we have not succeeded in boosting our force numbers to what could be considered an acceptable level. The establishment figure stood at 9,739 personnel in 2025, with a target to move towards the Commission on the Defence Forces' recommendation of 11,500 personnel by 2028. However, by having a policy of 400 recruits per year, it means it will take us ten years to get to the establishment figure. I accept that the Government has acted to significantly improve pay and conditions but much more needs to be done. I acknowledge that the Government accepts that there is a structural deficiency in the cadet pay system, which is a real disincentive to young men and women joining the officer corps. A return to the traditional pension scheme and a total abandonment of the single pension scheme would also help. At a time when we can be happy to boast of full employment arising from the diligence of the Irish population and the sound economic policies pursued by successive Governments, we have to ask ourselves where the new recruits are to come from. The Government needs to be creative in how it approaches this challenge, but it needs to be approached in a far more resolute manner than it has to date. If the required level cannot be achieved because the population is already at work in other areas, a question arises as to whether there are people in the State not at work or in education who could be encouraged, via some form of voluntary national service to sign up with our Permanent Defence Force. Let us look, if we can for a minute, at the health service. I recently reviewed stats that revealed that 40% of all practising doctors in Ireland were foreign trained. The same set of stats indicates that 54% of practising nurses in Ireland trained abroad and a staggeringly massive 78% of new nursing registrants in 2024 came from abroad.

I thank Deputy Ó Fearghaíl and I join with him in congratulating and commending those involved in the Sullivan Cup and the success they brought to themselves and our country. I acknowledge not just Deputy Ó Fearghaíl's interest in our Defence Forces, but his long-standing advocacy on behalf of them, which is coloured in part, I am sure, by the community and constituency in which he lives and, therefore, the knowledge he has in regard to that lived experience in County Kildare. I am proud of our Defence Forces. Every day, I am proud of the men and women of Óglaigh na hÉireann and how they serve our country with distinction. I was particularly proud of them yesterday and they do an excellent job on ceremonial and security occasions for this country. I was very proud of them when I visited them in Lebanon in the not-too-distant past. I saw the incredible contribution they made to peacekeeping in some of the most dangerous and troubled parts of our world and the hope they gave to the people of Lebanon of one day seeing a brighter, peaceful future. The links they have built with communities there and the trust they have of the local people are quite inspiring. The Deputy is right to say we should be proud of them. He is also right to say that we all need to do a hell of a lot more. We are absolutely committed to that - the Minister, Deputy McEntee, the wider Government and Deputy Ó Fearghaíl. We need to increase the numbers and strengthen retention. It is positive to see, after years of this going in the other direction, that we are moving back into a period of growth in regard to the numbers in our Permanent Defence Force. I believe there was growth of nearly 200 last year, with 790 inductions. There is a target of 850 inductions for this year. Overall application numbers for careers in the Defence Forces continue to grow. There were - this is quite a staggering figure - 16,510 applications received in 2025 and more than 10,000 received to the end of May 2026. That tells us something. It tells us that at an initial moment of time, there are a hell of a lot of people interested in serving in Óglaigh na hÉireann. What we need to do, and what the Defences Forces need to do and are doing, is work out how they can convert that high level of applications into a much higher level of inductions. I acknowledge the work that the Defence Forces are doing in preparing a new strategic workforce plan. I believe it has been submitted to the Department, which has a number of recommendations and modelling tools as well. The aim of this process is to provide that pathway to achieving a strength of 11,500, inclusive of civilian personnel. There has been progress in regard to cadets and pay. Upon commissioning, an officer's starting salary ranges from €46,823 to €52,265, depending on whether they join as a school-leaver or a graduate. The Minister has had discussions with the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers, RACO, agreeing to give further consideration to the issue of cadet pay prior to commissioning. That process is ongoing, which is important. We have the current public service pay agreement as well, which members of the Permanent Defence Force are part of, too. I take the Deputy's point. We need to significantly increase the numbers further and, at the same time, we need to increase the capabilities. Indeed, increasing capabilities without the personnel to utilise those capabilities will not be adequate. Therefore, we are looking at ways of turning that very significant level of interest in applications into a faster level of induction. That work is ongoing and the new workforce plan will assist.

People with far greater knowledge than I have are deeply sceptical about the number of applications that are being shown, but anyway. I want to go back to that comparison with the health service because, for me, it raises the legitimate question of whether we should be looking overseas to secure recruits. If we were to do so, we should be looking at countries where Irish Aid is active and where we could recruit members to the Permanent Defence Force on fixed-term contracts to allow us achieve the strength level required in our Defence Forces to fulfil their mandate. Many national armed forces make formal or informal provisions to recruit non-nationals. Reasons vary, including historical regimental practice, manpower shortfalls, diaspora links or pathways to citizenship, but the result is the same: foreigners in regular state militaries. The French Foreign Legion, for example, offers a five-year contract, I understand. It would be of dual benefit for such a foreign recruitment process, delivering, as it would if linked to Irish Aid, necessary numbers for our own forces and providing a degree of financial support for families coping with war and the ravages of climate change in disadvantaged countries.

I take that point because I hear it often. You see it in Garda numbers as well - the number of people who initially apply and how "serious" the applications are if only a very small percentage turns into inductions. There must be something in it, in the sense that the gap between the level of applications and inductions is very high. The Defence Forces is working through its strategic workforce plan to seek to make improvements on that. My own sense, for what it is worth, is that there can be people who apply at a moment in time. There are a lot of opportunities out there for people now and if you do not strike while the iron is hot and get them in while the interest is there, you can lose them. Faster processing and processes are important. Regardless of applications, inductions are thankfully rising. The size of the Permanent Defence Force is growing again. The issue the Deputy raised about recruiting from abroad is one I do not want to give a knee-jerk response to on the floor of the Dáil because it deserves policy consideration and the views of the Minister for Defence, but I will certainly ask that she revert to the Deputy on it. Technology is also going to change security and defence, the skill sets that we will need in our Defence Forces and the roles of people in Óglaigh na hÉireann. The opportunities that may exist there and the careers that may present are also worth considering, but we will keep in touch on this.