163. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Defence when she expects the permanent Defence Forces to attain the agreed establishment strength of 9,739; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53697/26]

171. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Defence the current strength of the permanent Defence Forces by, Army, the Air Corps and the Naval Service; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53695/26]

172. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Defence the action being taken to increase recruitment to the Defence Forces; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [54131/26]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 163, 171 and 172 together.

As Minister for Defence, I am fully committed to increasing and strengthening recruitment and supporting retention in the Permanent Defence Force.

The Military Authorities advise that the strength of the Permanent Defence Force (PDF) stood at 7,823 personnel consisting of 6,186 Army, 782 Air Corps and 855 Naval Service, on the 31 May the latest date for which this figure is available. This represents a year on year increase of more than 200 personnel.

Last year saw a modest, though significant, growth in the overall strength with a total of 790 inductions achieved- the highest in twenty years - and the number of personnel who discharged was at its lowest level in more than five years. I am determined to build on the expansion in personnel numbers achieved and have set a target of 850 inductions for 2026.

I am pleased that there continues to be very strong interest in a career in the Defence Forces with a total of 16,510 applications received in 2025 and over 10,000 applications received to end May 2026. The challenge now for the Defence Forces is to convert the high level of applications to inductions. A draft Strategic Workforce Plan prepared by the Defence Forces has recently been submitted to me for consideration. As the Deputy will be aware, the aim of this process is to provide a pathway to the achievement of a strength of 11,500, inclusive of civilian personnel, commensurate with Level of Ambition 2.

Increases in application numbers and in the overall strength of the PDF, over the last three years, demonstrate that the key enabling measures which the Government has introduced to support and drive Defence Forces recruitment and retention are yielding results. There also continues to be significant progress on pay with all personnel benefiting from a further pay award delivered earlier this month.

In addition, a wide ranging programme of capital investment in Defence Forces infrastructure, aimed at facilitating and enabling greater levels of recruitment and retention, continues apace. I was pleased to see first hand the significant progress being made during my visit to the Joint Induction Training Centre in Gormanston Barracks, an impressive facility which will, eventually, provide for the training of up to 900 recruits per annum. I was also proud to officially open the USAC building in Galway in February last - a 69 bed state of the art accommodation facility which was completed at a cost of €12.3 million,- and, in April, to officially open the refurbished Block 4 accommodation building in the Naval Service Base, Haulbowline, which will accommodate an additional 74 personnel following an investment of €8.8million.

Opportunities for careers in the Defence Forces remain open via a diverse range of ongoing competitions including general service recruitment, re-entry schemes and multiple direct entry competitions for specialist roles.

Underpinning these and other measures, I ensured that Budget 2026 provided a record allocation of €1.49 billion for the Defence Sector, an increase of €145 million on 2025. These funds include provision for the recruitment of a net 400 additional PDF members per annum. Furthermore the capability framework devised by the Commission on Defence Forces provides for an increase in the Defence budget to €1.5 billion by 2028, index linked to inflation, as part of the annual estimates processes. This level of funding increase will allow for the required substantial transformation and investment in recruitment and equipment identified by the Commission.

Significant strides continue to be made on a number of fronts and the allocation of record levels of expenditure, coupled with the initiatives I have outlined here, is illustrative of my commitment to building on the growth in recruitment and the stabilisation in retention achieved in recent years.