Crew shortages and a reduction in naval services were “extremely worrying” Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Micheál Martin has said following reports that the Naval Service has been reduced to two operational ships out of a fleet of eight.
Mr Martin told RTÉ radio’s News at One that he was not satisfied with the situation even though there was “expanded and improved” air capacity which had “significantly” enhanced maritime surveillance.
“This is not a satisfactory situation and there are a number of factors that relate to it... primarily full employment. We have a 74 per cent employment rate in the country now, which is the highest ever recorded. So that is challenging for the Naval Service in particular.”
When asked about a comment from former Assistant Garda Commissioner Michael O’Sullivan, who at one stage headed the EU’s anti-drugs agency, that the shortcomings in the Naval Service could lead drug cartels to exploit the gaps, the Tánaiste responded: “I think we need to be careful of those assessments. It’s not at the level we would want it to be, but there are various forms of surveillance and intelligence and cooperation between member states across Europe and indeed like-minded countries all over the world. So it’s not a simple matter.
“We’re all interdependent. It’s not that we depend on other countries. We work with other countries, and we provide intelligence to other countries just as much as they will provide intelligence to us in terms of drug trafficking or criminal operations. That is a feature of modern policing and the modern way of combating terrorism, cybersecurity threats and drug trafficking.”
Clearly the Irish Naval Service was “not optimally effective”, said Mr Martin. “It’s extremely worrying from my perspective, from the country’s perspective. I’m not happy with it.
He added: “I think we need a more radical approach to recruitment. I think the conversion rate for those who are planning to join the Naval Service and also who are actually inducted is far too low. The whole approach in terms of human resources within the Naval Service has to be looked at because younger people today look at the world of employment much differently than previous generations. We have to respond to the challenges that are there.”