Sharon Keogan: 3-Year Sunset for Military Deployments
Sharon Keogan moves Amendment 24 to insert a three-year sunset clause and a mandatory operational review framework into Part 3A on Defence Forces deployment in aid of the civil power. She sets out why classifications, thresholds and oversight are needed to avoid using the army for crowd control and to ensure proportionality.
Amendment overview
Sharon Keogan outlines Amendment 24, which adds a three-year sunset clause and requires the Minister to bring a report so the law does not lapse into a vacuum. The amendment also sets topics the report must consider, aiming to place constructive suggestions on the public record.
Deployment classifications and thresholds
Keogan argues the debate has conflated routine Defence Force assistance with large-scale domestic deployments. She calls for a clearer classification of different types of deployments and for appropriate thresholds so everyday assistance (bomb disposal, cash escorts) is treated differently from forceful mass operations.
Proportionality and protest
The speaker stresses proportionality when responding to civil disobedience and warns against treating non-violent protesters as grounds for military action. Keogan insists the Gardaí should have sole remit for crowd control and be properly resourced.
Safeguards and oversight
Keogan proposes mechanisms to check domestic deployment powers, including Cabinet or executive approvals and state-crisis conditioning, and offers a temporary extension route via both houses if a permanent law needs more time.
Why this matters
She frames the amendments as necessary in an age of growing securitisation: ensuring Defence Forces expand to face real threats while protecting democratic norms at home. Keogan commends the measures to the House and urges further discussion and refinement.
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Look, I rise to move Amendment 24. This amendment inserts a three-year sunset clause and a mandatory operational review framework into Part 3A. Directly addressing 24, this amendment inserts a three-year sunset clause and a mandatory operational review framework into Part 3A. Directly addressing the state's expanding powers regarding the Defence Force's deployment in aid of the civil power. Let me be clear, I support the broad principles of this bill and I welcome the qualification and modernisation of our defence protocols. Likewise, this is a miscellaneous bill and not really the place to introduce broad, sweeping reforms. However, just as we should not make the perfect the enemy of the good, we must never allow the good to become the enemy of the better. So I bring forward the amendment in the spirit of approving the bill and at a bare minimum in order to have some constructive suggestions entered into the public record, which I hope the Minister will consider. Now, in addition to adding a sunset clause, there is a requirement for the Minister to bring forward a report so the legislation does not expire into a vacuum. The amendment also outlines a number of things for this report to consider. These will address what I believe to be a number of conflations and simplifications which arose during the previous debate. One is for the report to consider the classification of the different types of deployment of the Defence Forces in aid of the civil power. During the previous stage, there was a conflation of virtually all kinds of deployments. On one hand, I believe the Minister mentioned routine deployments such as the bomb disposal squad helping the Gardaí or armed escorts for cash transports and on the other, the example of the deployment against the fuel protests. But this is not helpful. Obviously, attaching a section of soldiers to passively dissuade an attack on a cash transport is different from a deployment of a whole company to clear protesters from the streets. Another suggestion in the text is for consideration of the threshold appropriate to such classifications. In defence of the deployment during the fuel protests, we heard, well, they were in breach of the law and they had no right to be blocking vital infrastructure. Therefore, send in the troops. Well, this is a bizarre all or nothing dualism. Obviously, breaches of law must be treated with proportionality. Civil disobedience is by its nature breaking the law in a non-violent manner. When climate protesters blocked O'Connell Bridge or if pro-peace activists blocked Shannon Airport, is there any talk of deploying the army? Of course not. Unless a violent mob were surging up Grafton Street with clear intent to storm these buildings in order to violently overthrow the legitimate government, the army should not be deployed. As a general principle, the army should not be used for crowd control or dealing with protesters at all. That should be the sole remit of the Gardaí and they should be resourced accordingly. Because there is a tangible concern that the army can slip into becoming a backup riot squad and that is not right. The army is for the defence of the state, whether from the external invasion or the internal insurrection, not for protesters looking for a change of law or of policy or even vandals. Then we have consideration of the safeguards and oversight mechanism applicable to such deployments. Now, in looking to check these powers of domestic military deployments, we have also heard another duality, that either deployment in aid of civil power be subject to the approval of both of these houses or it should not. Now, this is not a helpful duality either. As the Minister pointed out, this would be impractical given the urgent nature of most deployments. But that does not mean that we should give such a high level of discretion to two Ministers of serious deployments either. A couple of ideas, for example, could be the Cabinet approval or the approval from the Taoiseach and the Tánaiseach and conditioning the approval on a state crisis check. I do not have a fully formed solution myself, but these are exactly the questions and discussions I wish for my amendments to encourage. On the back of these discussions and considerations, a permanent law is to be drafted. But if that is not yet ready, the amendment has provisions to extend the current legislation via a resolution passed by both houses if more time is needed to get it right. I believe that discussions and reforms along these lines will be vital going forward because we have to face the reality that we are sadly in an age of growing securitisation and our defence forces will, I hope, be growing and expanding to meet the tasks and dangers that the world faces. In that context, it is vital to look to the appropriate reforms in matters of domestic deployments and of deployment in aid of civil powers. I therefore commend my amendments to this House.
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