Minister for Defence Alan Shatter has said that while the strength of the Defence Forces will be maintained at 9,500 there will be a major streamlining of the organisation.
He said this will include a reduction in the number of Army Brigades from three to two, which will free up military personnel from administrative and support functions.
After the budget announcement on Monday, both PDFORRA and RACO - who represent enlisted personnel and officers - expressed disappointment and surprise at the Minister's move.
Chief of Staff Lt Gen Sean McCann said the Defence Forces will set about reorganising their structures as directed by the Minister in order to continue to deliver efficient, flexible and effective capability to the State.
Speaking in the Dáil this afternoon, Mr Shatter said the reduction in the number of Army Brigades will require a redefining of territorial areas of responsibility, but further barrack closures are not envisaged as part of this process.
The organisation of the Reserve Defence Force is also being examined.
The Minister said consolidation of the Defence Forces formations into a smaller number of locations has always been a key objective of the defence modernisation programme.
The location of personnel in a large number of locations has created major difficulties in the provision of collective training, while the manning and security of non-essential barracks takes personnel away from operational duties.
It also imposes unnecessary costs and overheads on the Defence Forces in terms of barrack management, administration and maintenance.
In addition to the reduction in strength, a range of cost reduction measures are being introduced to deliver savings.
These include the reprioritisation of equipment plans and associated planned reductions in procurement expenditure.
The procurement of the two naval vessels will continue from within the reduced defence allocation.
The first new naval vessel is scheduled for delivery in early 2014 with the second following a year later.
