DF Commission Report

Larbre34

€200 million headline increase and a specific target of 400 additional head.

Its not in line with a curve to achieve the LoA2 commitment, but we don't have the capacity to do that anyway, until the structures are in place.

This is almost entirely a management challenge for the next 2 to 5 years, not a money one.

Dohvolle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121218953#Comment_121218953

When inflation is factored in, the headline increase is far less.

jonnybigwallet

Fiddlers money I'd call it.

Grassy Knoll

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121215674#Comment_121215674

Finance little to do with it, D/Per controls expenditure policy. Anyway on the budget strikes me commitments re advertising for 400 more staff - and poss MRV is delusional stuff.

sparky42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121221632#Comment_121221632

I think at this stage keeping mentioning the MRV is more an accountancy trick than anything else, if its supposedly in the Capital expenditure plan already and was circa €200 million, if they tell the truth and kill it, then the already lack of spending collapses into the pack of lies that it is.

RavenP

Genuine big question here. With the current government financial position and other departments getting above inflation increases, no one would have batted an eyelid at a couple of hundred mil extra for the DF. One has to ask why this has not happened. Is there one element of the government or civil service who have a particular dislike of the DF? Is there some kind of hangover from post-civil war politics going on? Or is there a bigger influence on government or alternatively fear of the PANA types than usually credited and are the government going to find additional funds from the unallocated two billion later on? Are the DF not structured to actually spend the money right now? Is there some organisational issue within the way the government or civil service that mitigates against spending on Defence?

sparky42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121221739#Comment_121221739

All of the above?

RavenP

@sparky42 I really do not know. If the public finances had been really tight in the run up to the election, I could understand other departments with very good reason squeezing defence, but this is the least tight spending round in a long time. The exasperation of Cathal Berry in the Dail yesterday spoke volumes. If the management issues in the DF were so bad that they could not usefully spend any increased money, then I imagine Berry would not have made the statement he did, almost suggesting he would support an alternative government after the election, by whom I presume he means SF. It might simply because they are afraid to addressing DF pay and conditions in advance of an election unless there is a cascade of other calls for money from other sectors. Berry was right to compare himself to David MacWilliams though. This is criminal negligence by the government at a time of such risk for Ireland.

mupper2

It's a fitting metaphor for the state of the DF that the day after the budget this forum is dead quiet because nothing was done...

sparky42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121225016#Comment_121225016

I suppose when the Part Time Minister can't even be bothered...

https://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/martin-says-defence-forces-recruitment-targets-are-extremely-challenging-1538027.html

mupper2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121225044#Comment_121225044

..

Dohvolle

Now lads, the minister has let it be known that he's very disappointed with all your negativity...

Tánaiste defends Defence spending, rejects 'knee-jerk' calls for military resources (thejournal.ie)

sparky42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121225373#Comment_121225373

Boo **** Hoo, at this stage the Navy should just go for a full safety stand down and dare the Government to complain.

Grassy Knoll

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121220334#Comment_121220334

I make it a less than 2% yo-yo increase from the 2023 allocation, about half the rate of inflation €21m - no more needs to be said.

The problem IMHO is at this stage there is hardly the capacity to absorb any spend so the money can’t really be given to Defence. Money for wages is allocated for men and women who are not there. we buy ships, they will rust at the quay wall for lack of key personnel to crew them, aircraft , we are limited to only small numbers of basic models as the more complex gear requires tech support we don’t possess or training / operational frameworks we are years away from. Army may be a little more different as the equipment is smaller and arguably less complex in scale. In all cases there has been a historic neglect as manifest in underequipment across all services, lack of investment as seen in crumbling facilities, poor pay and conditions.

it seems to be fair DoD is undergoing a gradual cultural change, albeit from a very low base. Furthermore the officials there traditionally did not ‘game’ the system as per Health, Housing social protection etc where money has gone literally on old rope. Instead they should be fighting to increase their budget etc , almost’ expand an empire’ rather than infighting with the military side. Also the transformation programme seems impressive on one level, a lot of structures etc which might serve the process well over the long term.

However, the key issue of pay and conditions is the elephant in the room and they are at nothing, zero, zilch until that is addressed. It is well over a year since the Commissions report was published - a very realistic and practical blueprint- except it didn’t get into the pay issue - it is alright to be delivering the report recommendations as a tick box exercise but the key horizontal enabler - pay - needs to be addressed swiftly and decisively - words with respect I wouldn’t associate with Martin or McGrath etc

Certainly if progress was made on this we could begin to see gradual improvements, probably never reach the full establishment level, but at least staunch the flow. Talk of high end radars at this stage, MRVs etc is pie in the sky - who will man them, they will prob rust away for lack of technical crew at this point. The point that militaries are highly skilled, technical organisations operating complex platforms still has not registered in my view.

I hope Dr Cathal Berry keeps it up, the man is a high achieving, high credibility individual with an elite military pedigree. He might well ask what good is he doing, but it would be worse in my view without his public contributions. The only criticism I would have is he is perhaps too reasonable. Helped by his interventions any informed, reasonable individual you meet has well absorbed the message that our defence is sub par and needs urgent attention. Martin is becoming rattled as seen by reports of his press conference.

Grassy Knoll

I see some commentary here is that the increase for 2024 is €55m = 21 current +34 capex extra - presumably taken as gospel from press releases etc. However, I would like to point out this is an accounting sleight of hand, from the published Budget expenditure report book p25 table D sets out that the original NDP capital allocation for 2023 was cut by 34m from 176m to 142m, (which is actually close to the 2022 capex outurn. So 2023 capex is to be flat y-o-y)

in effect all that has been done in the budget is this has been restored to 176m for 2024, so in net terms we are getting the original 2023 capital allocation a year late. There may be reasons for this (delayed equipment payment ?) however to present this as an increase is disingenuous. There was no effort to reallocate this to other defence projects. IMHO 2024 allocations should be compared to the original 2023 capital one as published in the REV which is the basis of voted government expenditure. All of this is verifiable by looking at some online docs - buried in plain sight of course.

so if we are to compare on a like for like basis, defence spend is actually only rising by 21m on the current side. Let there be some honesty on the figures please …

Dohvolle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121230543#Comment_121230543

It isn't being increased in line with inflation either, as was promised. We have a steep climb if we want to reach €1.5bn by 2028(adjusted for inflation). At present the 1.5 is already 1.6.

roadmaster

Rest at ease everything is in hand.

https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/83d6a-department-of-defence-and-defence-forces-strategy-statement-2023-2026/

Manic Moran

So I've scanned it twice... Does it actually say anything?

mupper2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121250957#Comment_121250957

Not really.

Dohvolle

It's a bit like a safety statement you'd find at your place of employment. Nobody reads it though everyone signs a piece of paper to say they have. It details all the things that happen in every possible H&S scenario, but the reality is, if such event happen, its only afterwards this document is produced as a defence for "I thought that was your job" or "why didn't you" and "you should have" complaints.

roadmaster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121250957#Comment_121250957

They are still working on the detailed implementation plan which is at "Advanced stage". The same plan which was suppouse to ready at the latest of January 2023.

Its not like they need to rush or that there are any issues in the defence forces such as only 1 full strenght unit in the state whose troops are being sent from Bundorn to all over the country to cover duties. So nothing to worry about.

Dohvolle

They are counting down the clock, hoping to pass it on the the next dail, and sit on the opposition benches, complaining that the implementation plan is not out yet...

sparky42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121251748#Comment_121251748

So after the budget the “Implementation Plan” is reportedly finally going to cabinet and will be published, DOD and Finance will be happy about pushing things back another few years:

https://twitter.com/donlav/status/1719464048125735238

How low are the expectations?

roadmaster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121308362#Comment_121308362

Will they propose to commision a report on how to implement the Implementation Plan?

sparky42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121308643#Comment_121308643

With a review as well into the report, and then perhaps a public consultation, and then maybe a panel to correlate the findings?

Dohvolle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121308643#Comment_121308643

I'm sure the first objective of the implementation plan will be to recruit a team of independent academics, senators and TDs to supervise the implementation of the implementation plan. They will report to an Assistant secretary in the DoD who has yet to be recruited.

mupper2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121308729#Comment_121308729

Have we asked the AG if any of this is allowed by the Constitution?

mupper2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121308835#Comment_121308835

You forgot the vital trips to see how other countries do it, so junkets to Australia, Mexico, Spain, etc will have to be made

roadmaster

The year is 2026.

Sec Gen: Minister we are now able to put the plan in place.

Minister: Excellent when do we Start.

Sec Gen: Thats the problem the last service member finished up last week and we now have no Military.

MInister: Can the guards step in a form a paramilitary Unit like in Spain.

Sec Gen: Funny Story the Guards have all quit aswell the Justice Sect Gen tells me

Dohvolle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121308848#Comment_121308848

Don't forget NZ, which won't be done at the same time the Aus trip is on.