Ministers give details of overseas travel expenses

PARLIAMENTARY QUESTIONS this week about ministerial travel expenses for the past decade have been interpreted in a variety of ways by different departments.

Six Ministers gave no figures as they said they were still collating the data. These were: Ministers for communications Eamon Ryan; finance, Brian Lenihan; transport, Noel Dempsey; defence, Willie O’Dea; agriculture, Brendan Smith and education, Batt O’Keeffe.

Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central) asked each Minister “the annual cost to his/her department, of Ministerial expenses related to overseas travel engagements; and the event and the expense for same for each of the past 10 years”.

The departments of arts, sports and tourism, justice, and health gave information about the travel and subsistence expenses paid directly to the ministers rather than the costs of travel including flights and hotels, although some included hotels, but were not specified. Of those, the expenses paid to individual ministers for health and ministers of state were given and amounted to €44,083, up to June 2008.

Figures from November 2004 to June 2008 were listed for Mary Harney and came to €8,766.57, with the highest expense for a trip in March 2006 to Bahrain and South Africa when €1,351.44 was claimed. Between 2001 and 2004 then minister Micheál Martin claimed €4,276.96 with the highest for a St Patrick’s Day programme in the US in 2004.

Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism Martin Cullen said: “I am presuming the deputy is referring to expenses paid to ministers in accordance with the Department of Finance travel and subsistence regulations” and did not include flights or accommodation.

He identified the total for each year from 2002 – €1,336.33, to 2009 – €2,762.71. The highest figure is in 2008 for €5,241.83 but the events were not listed.

Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern listed the annual total paid to the minister and ministers of state which varied from €2,176 in 1999 to €10,403 last year. The highest amount was for €8,213 in 2000 and figures were not given for individual events or ministers.

Minister for the Environment John Gormley said his costs were being compiled. He gave total overall costs from 2004, including €55,474.01 last year and €30,082.74 to date this year, but did not list events.

Minister for Social and Family Affairs Mary Hanafin gave total costs for each year from 1999 to 2009 with the total for the decade at €284,272. The highest spend was €44,375 in 1999. Individual events were not identified, but the the totals included flights and accommodation.

Tánaiste Mary Coughlan listed the annual total for the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment including €258,058.58 in 2004, the highest spending year, €184,369.39 last year and €43.907.26 to date this year.

One of the more detailed replies came from Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs Éamon Ó Cuív, although figures were given only from 2007 on, with a total of €80,228.

The figures included flights, hotels and subsistence with a cost this year of €13,796 including a trip to Australia for €9,364.

Trips last year cost €41,739 and included India for St Patrick’s Day events (€6,802) and Boston/New York/Portland (€7,097) which included the 100-year anniversary of the Mayo Association and the unveiling of a plaque in honour of Éamon de Valera.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin gave figures for each minister since 2004 separating flights, accommodation and subsistence although he did not identify the events.

Flights, accommodation and subsistence for then minister Brian Cowen in 2004 during the EU presidency totalled €58,956. In 2005 then minister Dermot Ahern had costs of €53,865; while Mr Martin, who became Minister in 2008, had costs totalling €42,764 for that year.