Madam, - The White Paper on Defence was published in 2000. In that document it was set down as fundamental that, for the successful modernisation and re-equipping of the Irish Defence Forces, the pay to non-pay ratio of the defence budget should be 70:30.
Since 2004 this self-imposed rule has been broken consistently by Government with the likely result that training and modernisation will suffer - concerns that have been expressed by the now retired Chief of Staff, Lieut Gen Sreenan.
Can we have a commitment from the Minister for Defence that the 70:30 ratio will be restored, that the modernisation of the forces will continue and that the "ambitious and co-ordinated 10-year plan for defensive equipment procurement" will not suffer? - Yours, etc,
CHRISTOPHER DORMAN-O'GOWAN, Newcastle upon Tyne, England.