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.
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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.
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