The deficit can be put down to mathematics — more people are leaving the army than joining. Last year 758 people left the Defence Forces, but only 415 were recruited.

There are other challenges. Levels of pay and working conditions have been criticised for years, with one third of army officers favouring strike action in a recent survey. Also, many of those now leaving the army are non-commissioned officers — sergeants and corporals — which means the army is losing a huge amount of institutional expertise which cannot be easily replaced.

The recent conviction of Cathal Crotty, the soldier who knocked Natasha O’Brien unconscious in Limerick in 2022, has done little for the image of the Defence Forces. Neither did the subsequent revelation that 68 currently serving members of the Defence Forces have been convicted of a crime in the last three years or are currently before the courts.

While staffing numbers in the other branches of the Defence Forces are relatively stable, they also have their issues: The navy has only one ship out on patrol, for instance, due to personnel shortages and mechanical issues.

A recent Politico article labelled Ireland the “ultimate defence freeloader” when it comes to fulfilling our security obligations, which are varied: The recent security review pinpointed specific challenges such as the threat to vital offshore infrastructure from rogue states.

This is a problem without an easy solution. But having defence as a separate ministerial portfolio, not an additional or secondary brief, would be one obvious way to drive reform and improve matters.

Safety of bus and taxi drivers 

The metrics for determining whether our streets are safe or not may vary, but some measurements are more reliable than others.

The dangers facing taxi and bus drivers around Ireland have been articulated plainly in recent weeks. 

Last week we learned of a bus driver on a route in Cork being threatened with serious assault, while a driver in Limerick was shot in the face with an air gun last month.

A taxi driver in Cork suffered severe eye, nose, and mouth injuries being attacked in the city at 3.30am last Sunday; that comes weeks after two separate court cases where men who beat taxi drivers in Cork received suspended sentences.

First, taxi and bus drivers are entitled to work safely, without fear of assault. Their safety is paramount.

Second, if they cannot do so, our cities and towns will struggle, and the general pessimism about our urban centres will only gain momentum.

Having more gardaí on our streets would certainly help. Hopefully some of the gardaí who were sent to Paris to help the French authorities for the Olympics can be redeployed to do a similar job here.