Peadar Tóibín
Question:94. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence the number of persons recruited to the Defence Forces in each of the past ten years and to date in 2023. [29441/23]
View answerDáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 June 2023
94. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence the number of persons recruited to the Defence Forces in each of the past ten years and to date in 2023. [29441/23]
View answer117. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence the number of persons who resigned or retired from the Defence Forces in each of the past ten years and to date in 2023. [29442/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 94 and 117 together.
The military authorities have provided the information in the following table, detailing the total number of personnel inducted into, and discharged from, the Defence Forces in each of the years 2013 to 2023 (as at 31st May).
Year |
Total Inducted |
Total Discharges |
2023* |
149 |
293 |
2022 |
435 |
891 |
2021 |
576 |
686 |
2020 |
538 |
641 |
2019 |
605 |
882 |
2018 |
611 |
740 |
2017 |
751 |
742 |
2016 |
690 |
679 |
2015 |
406 |
571 |
2014 |
506 |
481 |
2013 |
404 |
473 |
*As at 31 May 2023
The term 'discharges' encompasses personnel who left for a variety of reasons including on age grounds, at end of contract and voluntary discharges and also includes a number of trainees who exited prior to completion of their initial training.
Ongoing staffing challenges in the Defence Forces have been acknowledged. In that regard, my immediate focus is on stabilising the numbers of personnel in the Defence Forces and thereafter increasing strength to meet the agreed level of ambition arising from the report of the Commission on the Defence Forces.