An Roinn Cosanta Óglaigh na hÉireann Department of Defence Defence Forces

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1. Introduction

1.1 The Defence Organisation^²

The mission of the Department of Defence and Defence Forces is:

“To provide for the military defence of the State, contribute to national and international peace and security and fulfil all other roles assigned by Government”^³
The Department of Defence comprises civil and military elements with a total of 650 personnel. Of this number 380 (whole time equivalents) are civil servants and 270 are military personnel. The military personnel constitute Defence Forces Headquarters (DFHQ). In addition, in the order of 850 civilian employees are employed throughout the Defence Forces. These civilian employees provide a range of general operative, trades and other services in military installations.
The primary role of the Department is to support the Minister as Head of the Department, in particular by providing policy advice and support on Defence matters. This includes assistance with policy formulation and the implementation of policy as directed by the Minister. The Secretary General is the Minister’s principal defence policy advisor and the Chief of Staff (COS) is the Minister’s principal military adviser.
Defence Forces

The Defence Forces are organised on conventional military lines providing a sufficiently flexible structure to carry out all the roles assigned by Government. The Defence Forces consist of a Permanent Defence Force (PDF) and a Reserve Defence Force (RDF).

The Permanent Defence Force consists of the Army, the Air Corps and the Naval Service. The authorised Permanent Defence Force strength is 10,500.
Naval Service
The Naval Service provides the maritime element of the State’s Defence Forces. The Naval Service has an authorised strength of 1,144 and operates a flotilla of eight vessels that are based in the State’s single Naval Base at Haulbowline in Co. Cork. The organisational structure of the Naval Service is outlined in Appendix 1.

1.1.2 Roles of the Defence Forces

The roles of the Defence Forces, which are set out in the White Paper on Defence (2000), are:

to defend the State against armed aggression; this being a contingency, preparations for its implementation will depend on an ongoing Government assessment of the security and defence environment;
to aid the civil power (meaning in practice to assist, when requested, the Garda Síochána, who have primary responsibility for law and order, including the protection of the internal security of the State);
to participate in multinational peace support, crisis management and humanitarian relief operations in support of the United Nations and under UN mandate, including regional security missions authorised by the UN;
to provide a fishery protection service in accordance with the State’s obligations as a member of the EU; and,
to carry out such other duties as may be assigned to them from time to time, e.g. search and rescue, air ambulance service, Ministerial air transport service, assistance on the occasion of natural or other disasters, assistance in connection with the maintenance of essential services, assistance in combating oil pollution at sea.

1.2 Overview of Value for Money and Policy Review (VFMPR) Initiative

The Government’s Expenditure Review Initiative (ERI) was launched in May 1997 and is part of the broader change process, which was framed by the Strategic Management Initiative (SMI). The SMI is a key catalyst in public sector management reform and modernisation.

The objectives of an expenditure review are to analyse Exchequer spending in a systematic way and to provide a basis on which more informed decisions can be made on priorities within and between expenditure programmes. In 2006, the ERI was revised and expanded by Government. Reviews conducted under this expanded scheme are now called Value for Money and Policy Reviews (VFMPR) and include other Policy Reviews whether conducted internally or commissioned externally, that impact on value for money. VFMPR are overseen by the VFMPR Central Steering Committee.
Each Government Department is required, in consultation with the Department of Finance, to identify suitable VFM reviews for inclusion in each round of the VFMPR cycle. Each Department is then responsible for conducting their VFM reviews, usually under the auspices of a steering committee with relevant expertise. In addition, each VFM review is now quality assessed by an external independent evaluation expert, drawn from a panel, which was established by the VFMPR Central Steering Committee. This quality assurance process ensures that VFM reviews are subjected to rigorous independent scrutiny prior to finalisation and publication and this enhances the objectivity of each review. The Review of Naval Service Vessel Maintenance was approved by Government as part of the 2006 – 2008 round of reviews.

1.2.1 VFM Reviews in the Department of Defence

Topics for inclusion in the programme of VFM and policy reviews are identified by the Strategic Management Committee (SMC). This high level civil/military committee comprises the Secretary General of the Department of Defence, the Chief of Staff (COS) of the Defence Forces, the two Assistant Secretaries of the Department and the two Deputy Chiefs of Staff. The Flag Officer Commanding the Naval Service (FOCNS) and General Officer Commanding (GOC) the Air Corps attend meetings of the SMC when matters relating to their services are discussed.

The management of the VFMPR process is the responsibility of an Assistant Secretary of the Department of Defence. Reviews are conducted under the auspices of an appointed civil/military steering committee with relevant expertise. A representative from the Department of Finance is invited to participate on the steering committee.
The terms of reference for each review are drafted by the steering committee and submitted to the Department of Finance for observations. The Secretary General of the Department of Defence, who is the Accounting Officer for all Defence Expenditure, approves final terms of reference.
The vessel maintenance function expends a significant proportion of Subhead J, of the Defence Vote, which is devolved to the Naval Service. In addition to this devolved expenditure the majority of expenditure on vessel maintenance relates to staff costs of both civilian and military personnel drawn from Subheads B and F of the Defence vote. The selection of Naval Service vessel maintenance as a review topic, was also intended to complement and further inform the implementation of Phase II of the introduction of the MIF in Defence. This phase of MIF was to see the development of costing methodologies and the development of enhanced performance management information within the Defence Organisation. The focused review of a complex maintenance function requiring detailed planning, personnel management, procurement and inventory management, involving both military and civilian personnel, provided an ideal opportunity to identify and disseminate best practices across the Defence Forces. Whilst the scope of this Review is confined to Naval Service vessel maintenance, it was anticipated that the lessons learned will and must have wider organisational benefits.