A COUNTRY by country breakdown of the €57 million administrative costs of operating Irish embassies and consulate offices shows more than €4 million was spent in Brussels last year.
The figures on the 76 overseas missions that are part of the Irish diplomatic network were provided by Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore, who said the amounts did not include the salaries of Irish-based staff.
“The network consists of 58 embassies, seven multilateral missions and 11 consulates general and other offices overseas . . . The figures do not include the salaries of the Irish-based staff, as these are a charge on the overall salaries budget of the department rather than on a specific mission,” Mr Gilmore said.
The highest spend in 2010 was on Brussels, with €4,194,314 spent on the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the EU and a further €930,301 allocated to the Embassy and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation initiative, Partnership for Peace.
The figure for London was €3,702,234. Ireland’s permanent mission to the United Nations in New York was allocated €2,081,792, with €1,915,099 going to the consulate general in the same city.
The spend for Paris, including the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, was €1,817,710. A total of €1,637,651 was spent in Tokyo, €1,329,159 in Washington DC and €1,180,581 in Rome.
In Kampala €1,140,515 was spent last year, with €1,111,600 allocated to Pretoria, €1,106,768 to Madrid and €1,064,758 to Moscow. The lowest amount was spent on Dili, the capital of East Timor, with €148,716.
Mr Gilmore said that in addition to the administrative costs of operating a mission, many embassies funded programmes in their respective countries. This was particularly the case in missions which funded Irish Aid activities, he added. “The administrative costs of offices in Irish Aid programme countries are often high due to issues such as the additional security required in a developing country context,” Mr Gilmore said.
Mr Gilmore also said that from time to time missions could incur “significant” capital expenditure in relation to their premises or for upgrading of essential infrastructure.
These capital costs were not included in the annual administrative costs he provided in response to a Dáil question from Sinn Féin TD Peadar Tóibín.
A spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs said the total administrative costs of maintaining Ireland’s network of diplomatic missions was reduced by 34 per cent in 2010 compared to 2008.
A “lighter model of representation” was being tested in a number of European capitals, he added.
Highest costing overseas missions
Brussels€4,194,314
London€3,702,234
New York€2,081,792
Paris(pictured) €1,817,710
Tokyo€1,637,651
Washington€1,329,159
Rome€1,180,581
