The new strategic infrastructure plan and the new strategic framework clearly set out how we can be more ambitious when it comes to increasing our overall Defence Forces numbers. Our numbers increased by 200 last year. I appreciate that this is a smaller number than we would like, but I am determined that we will continue on that trajectory right across our Defence Forces. To that effect, I am working closely with th…
TDs / Helen McEntee
Helen McEntee
Minister for DefenceMinister for Foreign Affairs and Trade
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
0
questions asked
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them
245,309
words spoken in the chamber
245,286 as a minister, 23 as a TD
321
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
Members of the Government answer parliamentary questions rather than ask them, so this page lists none of theirs.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Contributions to debates 806 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
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| Month | Contributions |
|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 58 |
| March 2025 | 1 |
| April 2025 | 69 |
| May 2025 | 45 |
| June 2025 | 32 |
| July 2025 | 38 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 8 |
| October 2025 | 13 |
| November 2025 | 74 |
| December 2025 | 40 |
| January 2026 | 2 |
| February 2026 | 28 |
| March 2026 | 32 |
| April 2026 | 2 |
| May 2026 | 161 |
| June 2026 | 34 |
| July 2026 | 65 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 50 |
| October 2026 | 54 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 727 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Meath East 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fine Gael 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister for Education 23 January 2025 to 1 May 2025
- office Minister for Education and Youth 2 May 2025 to 18 November 2025
- office Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade 18 November 2025 to now
- office Minister for Defence 18 November 2025 to now
I am the first to say that we need to be more ambitious, but that is not to suggest that nothing has been done. In terms of human resources, recruitment and retention, we have increased the maximum ages for recruitment and retirement. We have extended the private secondary healthcare to all personnel. We have applied the working time directive across the Defence Forces, subject to certain exemptions. We have increase…
I want to take this opportunity to thank the men and women of Óglaigh na hÉireann for their commitment and professionalism in carrying out their essential duties in defending our State, serving in vital peacekeeping missions abroad and assisting our civil bodies. I had the opportunity to have my first meeting with the representative organisations, RACO and PDFORRA, in January where this issue was discussed, and I hop…
That statement was merely stating the fact that the reports were not legally binding, but it is essential that we respond to the findings and work in accordance with the ECSR. That is something we are committed to.
We have responded to many of the issues raised since that complaint was made. Members of the Defence Forces are compensated for additional or irregular hours through allowances and structured systems of c…
We both fully agree that we can talk about expansion, growth and enhancing our capabilities. If we do not invest in the men and women of Óglaigh na hÉireann in the context of supporting and retaining them and recruiting further members, however, we are not going to be able to deliver on the ambitious programme that we have and that we all want to work towards. It is extremely important to understand what the issues a…
On timelines, the defence (amendment) Bill 2025, which relates to how deploy our Defence Forces overseas, is included in the Government's legislative programme for priority publication during the current parliamentary session.
The drafting of the Bill is continuing in conjunction with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel, and publication of the Bill is a key priority for me and for the Government in this term. Only i…
I respectfully say that we are not moving away from anything. In fact, if the Deputy talks to anybody in the UN, they will tell her that Ireland is one of the staunchest defenders of multilateralism and of the UN, whether it is peacekeeping or humanitarian work and support. We will continue to defend that but at the moment, the structure that we subscribed to is not working. At the moment, we cannot send our troops t…
I ask the Deputy to tell me how this is actually going to impact on our neutrality because I have yet to have someone explain to me how sending peacekeeping troops is going to impact on our neutrality. We already partake in missions. We already partake in cybersecurity. We already partake in training missions. We already partake in other missions. We are not talking about an EU army. We are not talking about joining …
As I referred to this evening, and Deputy Timmins has very clearly referred to it, the world we are living in is changing. The types of threats are changing and the intensity of the threats are changing. Even the relationships we have relied on to date are also changing. It is really important that we as a country respond, that we do so in a number of different ways, and that we are ambitious in our overall desire to…
I fully agree. When we talk about threats, we talk about them perhaps in a way as though they are in the future. We have already been subject to these types of changing hybrid threats. It was just five years ago when the HSE had a cyber-attack that impacted access to significant amounts of information and the functioning of the HSE and our social protection system. We have seen it already and we know it is there. Thi…
The maritime security strategy will ensure that we are taking ownership of what we need to do, but given the vast, expansive maritime domain we are looking at, it is important that we work closely with other colleagues and friends. It is important that we have a more permanent structure in place to be able to co-operate in that way. We are not immune to Russian threats, in the same way no other country is. We have al…
I thank the Deputy for the question. There have been a number of calls, including from Sinn Féin, for a public plebiscite in relation to the Government's proposed changes to the triple lock. It is important to highlight that there is a lot of conflation as to what is being proposed and what will be done and is actually being suggested.
This mechanism is not set out in our Constitution. What we are amending is not so…
Again, I keep hearing in the Chamber this evening that we are not investing in the Defence Forces and therefore this is somehow related to the triple lock. The triple lock is about how we send our Defence Force personnel. At the moment we have 436 troops, as of 31 January, on peacekeeping missions. That has nothing to do with how many members we have overall, which is over 7,000. I will be the first to say that we ne…
Respectfully, if we cannot send troops to engage in peacekeeping missions then we are going to lose that level of respect that we have had for many years. Countries will look at us and ask how do we not have the ability to send our own troops where we want to send them.
That is the situation we will find ourselves in. The world is changing. We need to update our laws. They are currently not fit for purpose when it c…
Last December, I was pleased to announce the record allocation of €1.7 billion in the NDP capital funding for defence from now until 2030. This represents an increase of €600 million or 55% on the previous baseline of €1.1 billion. For 2026, the defence capital allocation has increased by €66 million to €300 million. Obviously, we want every barracks and every area to be able to benefit from that spending. It is a cl…
I fully agree. If we want to not only attract people to the Defence Forces but to retain them, we need to make sure the environment that they are working and training in is fit for purpose and insofar as possible, that it is as modern as it can be.
When you look at the next NDP and the capital plan for defence, we have €300 million being spent in 2026. In the next few years, it is rising to €360 million. When you br…
I will try to touch on a number of issues raised.
At present, our strength is 7,756 personnel. It is an increase of almost 200 on the previous year. While it is modest, we need to continue with that particular trajectory and I want to build on that progress achieved. I have set a target of 850 inductions for this year.
It is important that when we are talking about investment, we are not only talking about investme…
I thank the Deputy. Increasing recruitment and retention of personnel in the Defence Forces is a priority for me as Minister and for everybody here who has spoken this evening. As Government, we are committed to putting the resources in place to achieve level of ambition 2, and a crucial element of this is personnel expansion. A range of measures have already been undertaken to tackle recruitment and retention challe…
There are several things happening that we need to see continue to encourage more and enhance greater uptake when it comes to those who wish to join the Defence Forces. I have said the numbers wishing to join are pretty substantial, but it is about then translating them. My focus this year is making sure we have the accommodation we need for training and that we have enough personnel for those in our Defence Forces c…
The Deputy has given me an opportunity to again acknowledge Fr. Paul Murphy and his four colleagues who came to his aid so bravely and unarmed when responding to what was a vicious and violent attack. Last week, I had the honour, with the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces,of presenting them with the distinguished service medals. This is something that is not given out to everybody. This recognised their bravery, b…
The strategic framework, which I published on 10 February, highlights my Department's plans over the next 12 months to further improve working conditions within the Defence Forces. This is a commitment I will continue to champion, as will the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, for defence and the Defence Forces. The key actions and outcomes to be delivered specifically include, first, career and talent processes and pr…
I answered a question on this earlier, specifically around the committee, its recommendations and the working times. Where members work additional or irregular hours, they are compensated through allowances and structured systems of compensatory rest. This is an element that addresses the time issue. In addition, the pensionable military service allowance, which is designed to compensate for the special disadvantages…
I want to acknowledge Private Seán Rooney and the ultimate sacrifice he paid in his duty and service in the Lebanon and, of course, those who were with him on the day and who also suffered after what happened in the attack. I am absolutely committed to following on from the commitment of my predecessors, and everyone in this Chamber, in ensuring that we uncover the truth and get justice for Private Rooney, in particu…
It is very difficult for family members when this has been going on for longer than any of us would like. I would like to be able to give the Deputy a fuller update on the floor this evening, but unfortunately there are a number of different processes under way at home as well as our engagement with the Lebanese forces and the Government there and with the UN, as the Deputy mentioned. Whenever an incident occurs, par…
I am happy to keep the Deputy updated on matters, first and foremost to keep the family updated and working closely with the Defence Forces. I am happy to update the Deputy on this and on any other matters relating to pensions.