Army’s role in Galway set to come under attack

Date Published: 30-Jun-2011

By Dara Bradley

Plans to downgrade the Army barracks in Renmore are ‘back on the table’ as the new Minister for Defence is considering an old proposal to disband the country’s only Irish speaking battalion.

In February, this newspaper revealed that a proposal to disband the Army’s only Irish speaking battalion, An Céad Cath, was under consideration by the previous government, which would have resulted in a reduction in personnel from 234 to 69 at Dún Uí Mhaoiliosa.

But there was uproar over the plan to redeploy the soldiers to Athlone and the previous Minister for Defence, Galway West Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív, in one of his last acts before leaving government in March, gave a direction – which was agreed at Cabinet – to the Department of Defence that a full-strength Irish speaking battalion should be retained in any reconfiguration of the Defence Forces.

Ó Cuív’s eleventh hour decision effectively secured the future of Renmore barracks, but the concerns about An Chéad Chath and Renmore Barracks have resurfaced again after Defence Minister Alan Shatter this week rescinded the order made by his predecessor.

In a written reply to Deputy Ó Cuív, who asked if his direction still stood, Minister Shatter said all options are under consideration to find savings and cut costs in the Defence budget.

And Deputy Ó Cuív told the Galway City Tribune yesterday that not only has the Minister not ruled out the downgrading of Renmore Barracks, but the indications coming from well-placed military sources and from within the department are that the Government would “now be proceeding to implement the proposal to reduce personnel from 234 to 69”.

Deputy Ó Cuív said if it is implemented, the decision would, in time, effectively lead to the closure of Renmore Barracks.

For more on this story, see the Galway City Tribune.