After nine months of bad news for the tourism industry, Fianna Fáil was today left trying to explain why all ten of its members failed to turn up for a crisis meeting of the Oireachtas Committee on Tourism.
After what appears to be an organisational failure, coupled with a communications breakdown, the crisis meeting was left yesterday without a quorum and unable to proceed.
Top executives of Bord Fáilte and the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation held an informal meeting with Tourism Minister Mr Jim McDaid instead.
Fine Gael whip for the Committee Mr Michael Joe Cosgrave said he had never seen such an overwhelming failure to attend a committee meeting.
"With the tourism industry in a state of decimation following first the foot-and-mouth outbreaks in Britain and then the September 11th attacks we were very anxious to get the Minister’s views on how the Government was going to respond", he said.
All ten of the Fianna Fáil members of the committee missed the meeting.
Mr Liam Aylward and Mr Michael O'Kennedy sent their apologies in advance, Mr Donal Moynihan and Mr Brendan Kenneally were on Oireachtas business overseas, Mr Billy Kelleher was hosting the Taoiseach in his constituency and the three senators - Mr Jim Glennon, Mr Tony Kett and Mr Pat Moylan - were in the Seanad.
Mr John Moloney was busy in other meetings all day and apologised today for missing the meeting while Mr Mattie Brennan - the Fianna Fáil committee whip who would normally ensure enough TDs from his party attended - was on holiday.
A spokesperson for Fianna Fail questioned why the opposition members of the Committee did not adjourn the meeting for half an hour to allow for the return of the three senators who had been called in to the Seanad to listen to Foreign Minister Brian Cowen's speech on the IRA's decommissioning. Mr Brennan told ireland.comthis afternoon he did not see what the fuss was all about.
"Communications broke down and I don’t see what the big deal is, we can always reconvene the meeting. The meeting should have been called on a Wednesday not on a Thursday afternoon when people are going home or off on holiday".
Mr Brennan said he had arranged to be paired in the Dáil and was absented from its business. However, it seems in his absence no one had been given the task to ensure the meeting was attended by enough Fianna Fáil TDs or explain to the Committee why so many were absent and that the senators would be late.
Yesterday a spokesman for Fianna Fáil said it was the responsibility of the chairperson to ensure a quorum was present.