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  • Naval Cadet Commissioning.

    Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at the Department of Defence Mr. Paul Kehoe attends Naval Service Commissioning Ceremony of the 49th Naval Service Cadet Class.

    Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at the Department of Defence, Mr. Paul Kehoe, T.D. today (Friday 9th September 2011) attended the Naval Service Commissioning Ceremony of the 49th Naval Service Cadet Class at Haulbowline in Cork.

    The Minister was welcomed to the Naval Base by the Deputy Chief of Staff (Operations), Major General Ralph James and the Flag Officer Commanding the Naval Service, Commodore Mark Mellett and Assistant Secretary of the Department Mr. Quinn.

    Speaking at the Commissioning Ceremony for eight (8) members of the 49th Naval Cadet Class, Minister Kehoe offered his congratulations to the newly commissioned officers and said “Today is a celebration of real achievement and marks the passing of a great milestone in the lives of these new officers.” He indicated that “Today’s ceremony brings to finality two years of hard work and dedication by these young people in which they have undergone an extensive training programme, covering both professional and academic subjects, and of course hands on experience on the high seas. The training they have received has equipped these young professionals with the skills necessary to face the many and varied challenges they will encounter in the course of their military careers. As they now begin their first step of their journey as commissioned officers I wish them well in their future careers with the Naval Service. They have successfully achieved the high standards required of them in a wide variety of activities and I have no doubt that they will be at the helm of the development of the Naval Service long into the future.”

    The Minister referred to the difficult and challenging economic times in which we live. He stated that “When Minister Shatter first visited the Naval Base in May of this year he was hugely impressed with the collaboration between the Navy, the National Maritime College of Ireland and innovative small companies in the development of products. This work benefits the Service, and has the potential to create substantial employment in the future and contribute to our export growth”. The Minister also referred to the fact that the Naval Service has been involved in various workshops with the Marine Energy and Resource Centre and Campus Cluster. This is a partnership of the Naval Service, University College Cork, Cork Institute of Technology and National Maritime College Ireland. Enterprise Ireland has also been involved in these workshops, that will give Irish companies exposure, and will also benefit the Naval Service.

    Minister Kehoe acknowledged the considerable modernization and efficiencies achieved by the Defence Forces and the wider Defence Organization and noted that these efficiencies have been converted into significant investment in new equipment. He added that following a tender competition a contract was awarded in October 2010 to Babcock Marine in the UK for the provision of two new Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) for the Naval Service. The new ships will replace two of the older Naval Service vessels, which will be withdrawn from operational service. Preparations for the construction of these new vessels have commenced and the first new vessel is scheduled for delivery in early 2014. The second vessel will follow one year later. The acquisition of these modern new vessels, combined with a continuous process of refurbishment and repair of the remainder of the fleet, will ensure that the operational capability of the Naval Service is maintained at a satisfactory level and that the most up to date equipment is available to Naval Service personnel.

    The Minister continued “The Naval Service makes an important contribution across a wide variety of roles assigned by Government. The success of the Naval Service in the areas of fishery protection, search and rescue and the provision of aid to the civil power in particular drug interdiction is clear for all to see. These high profile roles have the added benefit of conveying the importance of the Naval Service to the wider community. Minister Shatter is committed to continuing the development of the Naval Service to ensure that it is capable of fulfilling the full range of tasks assigned to it by the Government. To this end a Cadetship competition was held recently in order to recruit a total of thirty two 32 Cadets, eight of whom will join the Naval Service. It is anticipated that their training will commence later this year.”

    Concluding Minister Kehoe said “I would like to pay tribute to the Naval College staff involved in preparing these cadets for officer duty. Today however, belongs primarily to these new officers. They are charged with providing leadership and guidance to others, a responsibility, I have no doubt they will discharge with excellence.”

    ENDS




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