279. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Defence the number of staff, whole-time equivalents in the Defence Forces in June 2016 and in June 2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [63442/26]

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 me that the strength of the Permanent Defence Force (PDF) stood at 9,085 whole time equivalent (WTE) personnel on the 30 June 2016 and 7,816 WTE personnel on the 30 June 2026.

2025 saw an expansion in the overall strength of the PDF of almost 200 personnel, with a total of 790 inductions achieved, the highest in twenty years. The number of personnel who discharged was at its lowest level in more than five years. Total inductions for 2026 stood at 414 to the end of July and the Defence Forces advise that they are targeting the achievement of in excess of 800 inductions for the year.

Interest in a career in the Defence Forces remains robust with a total of over 13,000 applications received to end July 2026, thereby building on the 16,510 applications received last year. The challenge now for the Defence Forces is to convert this 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.

Recruitment to the Defence Forces remain open and ongoing via a diverse range of competitions including general service recruitment, re-entry schemes and multiple direct entry competitions for specialist roles, the most recent of which to launch include those for Instrumentalists and Aerospace Engineers.

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. These measures include: significant progress on pay; increases in the maximum ages of recruitment and retirement respectively; the extension of private secondary healthcare to all personnel; the application of the provisions of the Working Time Directive across the Defence Forces subject to certain exemption, and increases in patrol duty allowance.

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 earlier this year, 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.

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.

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.