Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Naval Service is the State's principal sea-going agency tasked with a variety of defence and other roles. The main day-to-day tasking of the Naval Service is to provide a fishery protection service in accordance with the State's obligations as a member of the European Union. These patrols are carried out on a regular and frequent basis and are directed to all areas of Irish waters as necessary. I am advised that the fleet is managed to ensure maximum availability to meet operational requirements.

On any given patrol day the Naval Service can carry out a number of taskings on behalf of other State agencies such as the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority, An Garda Síochána and the Customs Service of the Revenue Commissioners.

The Naval Service has nine ships. Two ships, LÉ Orla and LÉ Eithne, are currently in operational reserve but can be called upon for surge operations in times of national emergency, as was the case when LÉ Eithne was deployed to Cork City in 2020 in support of Operation Fortitude and the national response to the Covid-19 pandemic. LÉ Eithne acted as a forward logistics base and training platform in support of the HSE. Of the remaining seven ships, one is in the process of a mid-life re-fit which is expected to last 18 - 24 months. There are six ships currently available for operations at present.

At any one time the Naval Service can have a number of ships  that are on active operations around the Irish EEZ whilst a number of others are undergoing routine resupply, maintenance and down time for ships companies.

The operational patrol profile of the ships cannot be discussed in detail due to the security implications to ongoing operations, however, Naval Operations Command operate a rotating patrol schedule to maintain a constant presence in the Irish EEZ.

The White Paper on Defence sets out an ambitious programme of capital investment in the Naval Service, including the mid-life refit and upgrade of the P50 class of vessels, and the replacement of the flagship LÉ Eithne with a multi-role vessel (MRV). The MRV, is an important element of the Defence Equipment Development Plan and is provided for in the Government's National Development Plan as a major capital project. It is the Government’s intention that this new vessel will provide a flexible and adaptive capability for a wide range of maritime tasks.

Projects for other vessel replacements, such as the replacement of the Coastal Patrol Vessels, the LÉ Ciara and LÉ Orla will be considered over the lifetime of the White Paper on Defence in the context of overall capability development and funding along with the overall Equipment Development Plan process. These ships will be replaced with similar sized vessels with countermine and counter-IED capabilities.

The Deputy will also be aware that the Commission on the Defence Forces recently published their report on the 9th February 2022. The Commission have undertaken a significant body of work encompassing wide-ranging terms of reference. The report contains 69 main recommendations and together with sub recommendations, there are 130 recommendations. The Commission's terms of reference included the consideration of appropriate capabilities, structures and staffing for the Army, the Air Corps and the Naval Service.

It is anticipated that this process will take at least four to five months in order to bring a considered and comprehensive proposal back to Government to address the fundamental issues that the Commission have set out.

I can assure the Deputy that notwithstanding current challenges being experienced, the Naval Service continues to carry out the roles assigned by Government, including fishery protection and maritime security operations.