Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Minister for Justice, Equality & Defence Estimates Speech - Budget 2012

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Minister for Justice, Equality & Defence Estimates Speech - Budget 2012

    Alan Shatter TD
    Minister for Justice and Equality and Defence
    Wednesday 7 December 2012

    Thank you, Ceann Comhairle

    The Justice and Defence Sectors, like all public sector areas, must contribute their share to the measures necessary to put our public finances in order. I will address the various constituent parts of the Justice Sector first and will then comment on the estimates for the Defence Organisation.
    .....

    Defence:
    The Defence area faces difficulties that are very similar to those in Justice, when it comes to maintaining operational effectiveness within reduced budgetary allocations.

    The Defence Organisation has a proud record of reform and modernisation, unique within the public service. In the past decade, Defence expenditure has reduced in real terms whilst capabilities and services have been improved. The task in 2012 is to make the changes necessary to maintain operational effectiveness within a restricted financial allocation. Achieving this task will require a firm commitment to change, prioritization, cost reductions and effectiveness. I know the Defence Forces in which we should take great pride, are up to this task, and will in 2012 with courage and dedication continue to play an important role in peacekeeping duties abroad and in their domestic duties at home when required.

    Because the Defence Forces have downsized faster than the rest of the Public Service and are already 11% below the 2000 strength level, the Government have decided that there will be no further reduction below the strength level proposed in the Comprehensive Review of Expenditure. While the strength will be maintained at 9,500 there will be a major streamlining of the organisation.

    The re-organisation of the Defence Forces in the context of the reduced strength will prioritise “front-line” service delivery. This will include a reduction in the number of Army Brigades from three to two which will free up military personnel from administrative and support functions.

    The reduction in the number of Army Brigades will require a re-defining of territorial areas of responsibility. Further barrack closures are not envisaged as part of this process. I have asked the Chief of Staff and Secretary General to prepare re-organisation proposals for my consideration. This will also include proposals relating to the Reserve Defence Force, which is currently organised along similar lines to the Permanent Defence Force.

    The recently announced barrack closures are a key element in absorbing the reductions in the strength of the Defence Forces while minimising the impact on front-line services. The consolidation of the Defence Forces formations into a smaller number of locations has always been a key objective of the Defence modernisation programme. The location of personnel in a large number of locations has created major difficulties in the provision of collective training, while the manning and security of non-essential barracks takes personnel away from operational duties. It also imposes unnecessary costs and overheads on the Defence Forces in terms of barrack management, administration and maintenance.

    In addition to the reduction in strength, a range of cost reduction measures are being introduced to deliver savings. These include the reprioritisation of equipment plans and associated planned reductions in procurement expenditure. A recent re-examination of the Defence ten-year equipment plan has identified the minimum priority equipment required up to 2017 which will inform equipment purchases in 2012. The procurement of the two naval vessels will continue from within the reduced Defence allocation. The first new naval vessel is scheduled for delivery in early 2014 with the second following one year later.

    There is no escaping the fact that difficult decisions will continue to have to be made until we get our public finances back in order. That being said, I am confident that, with the resources available and through the changes in the way in which both sectors do business, we will maintain viable and effective Justice and Defence Sectors in the challenging times ahead.


    Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing.
Working...
X