Organisation information
Bodies under the aegis of the Department of Defence
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The only State body currently under the aegis of the Department of Defence is the Army Pensions Board. The Army Pensions Board is an independent statutory body, established under the Army Pensions Act 1927, and is based in St. Bricin's Military Hospital in Dublin.
The Act specifies that the Board shall consist of a chairman and two ordinary members. The two ordinary members must be qualified medical practitioners of whom one must be an officer of the Army Medical Corps. The chairman and the non military ordinary member are appointed by the Minister for Defence with the concurrence of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. The Army Medical Corps ordinary member is appointed by the Minister for Defence on the recommendation of the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces.
Day to day worked related to the Board is undertaken by Board's Secretary who is a full time civil servant employed by the Department of Defence. The Board does not directly employ any staff.
The Office of the Ombudsman (ODF)15 for the Defence Forces was established pursuant to the provisions of the Ombudsman (Defence Forces) Act 2004, as amended by the Defence (Amendment) Act 2007 [Section.11-Schedule 4(Part 4)].
Mr. Justice Alan Mahon was appointed Ombudsman for the Defence Forces on 6 July 2018. The ODF is an independent external complaints mechanism for existing and former members of the Defence Forces and the provisions for making a complaint are set out in the Act. 45 Notifications of Complaint were received by the ODF in 2023 and 22 of these Notifications of Claims were subsequently referred to the ODF for investigation.
Under the Act, the ODF can make a finding and recommendation, which is submitted to the Minister for his/her determination. The Chief of Staff is also required to provide a response to the Ombudsman’s Report, which is considered by the Minister. The ODF is required to furnish such information regarding the performance of his or her functions to the Minister for Defence, upon request. The ODF is funded through the Defence Vote and comes under the aegis of the Minister for Defence. The ODF Annual Report is published on ODF Annual Reports
The Report of the Independent Review Group (the “IRG”), published on 28 March 2023, established to examine issues relating to allegations of discrimination, bullying, harassment, sexual harassment and any form of sexual misconduct in the Defence Forces, recommended the establishment of an external oversight body.
The External Oversight Body (EOB) of the Defence Forces was established, on a non-statutory basis initially, to oversee the implementation of relevant recommendations of the Report, to increase transparency and accountability in the Defence Forces and to bring about necessary changes to the workplace culture and behaviour in the Defence Forces.
Legislation has been passed by the Houses of the Oireachtas to provide for the establishment of the EOB on a statutory footing. The EOB is funded through the Defence Vote and comes under the aegis of the Department of Defence. The EOB reports directly to the Minister for Defence periodically and reports are published on the EOB’s website at EOB Reports