Forces worry that staff will keep leaving

By KEVIN TAYLOR political reporter

The Defence Force says a concerted effort is needed to retain staff as re-equipment projects worth more than $2 billion loom.

Cabinet papers released at the weekend say big re-equipment projects will impose added burdens on military training and mean a bigger requirement to retain experienced staff.

The Army is particularly concerned that the arrival of the first of 105 Light Armoured Vehicles in September or October will exacerbate shortages of crewmen, mechanics and electronic technicians.

But the Chief of Defence Force, Air Marshal Bruce Ferguson, told the Herald yesterday he was not unduly concerned about staffing because it was being addressed.

"I'm concerned, but it's not a crisis at all. There are real personnel challenges out there that I was raising with the Government.

"Should they fail to be addressed by myself and the Government then there's a real possibility downstream that some capabilities may be affected, but the reality is we are addressing them."

The release of the papers comes as Defence Minister Mark Burton prepares to travel to Australia this week to meet his counterpart, Robert Hill.

Coming re-equipment projects include new Navy vessels for $500 million, the LAVs, a replacement for the Army's Land Rovers, new transports jets, replacement of the Iroquois helicopters, and upgrades of the Orion and Hercules aircraft.

Together the projects will cost more than $2 billion.

The papers say that the Defence Force attrition rate, while dropping from 15.5 per cent to 12 per cent after a pay rise last year, is still too high.

The Canadian military attrition rate was 6 per cent while the Australian military's was 8 per cent.

Mr Ferguson said New Zealand's rate was creeping down and he was aiming for the "high single-figures" within four or five years.

The Defence Force was using innovative strategies to recruit and retain staff, and he said the Government had granted all three pay rises for staff that he had requested in the last three years.

The papers briefed the Cabinet on the need for the latest pay rise, announced before the May Budget.

The three pay rises together totalled about $56 million, and Mr Ferguson said they had helped retain staff.

NZ First defence spokesman and former Army officer Ron Mark said the papers confirmed his worst fears.

He was concerned there would not be enough people to operate and maintain the LAVs and that they would end up sitting in storage in warehouses.

"I have always had my doubts and suspicious about the Army's ability to crew, maintain, and support 105 of these things."

$2b to be spent


105 Light Armoured Vehicles: $700m.

Multi-role ship, and inshore and offshore patrol vessels: up to $500m.

Land-Rover replacement: $60m-$110m.

P3 Orion systems upgrades: $210m-$320m.

C130 Hercules life-extension: $100m-$170m.

Two Boeing 757 transport jets: $100m-$200m.

Iroquois helicopter replacement: $400m-$500m.