Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

The decision to close Ireland's resident embassy to the Holy See was taken by the Government in response to budgetary pressures and on the recommendation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade which sought to assess where budget cuts would impact least on the national interest at this time of economic crisis. The total cost saving in a full year from the closure is estimated at €845,000, of which €400,000 will come from the closure of the resident embassy to the Holy See. An additional €445,000 in savings will come from the transfer of Ireland's embassy to Italy from its previous rented premises to the State-owned Villa Spada. In the meantime the Holy See has accepted the Government's nomination of the Secretary General of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr. David Cooney, as ambassador on a non-resident basis. Mr. Cooney is expected to present his credentials to Pope Benedict XVI in May.

The decision to close the resident embassy to the Holy See will not be reversed in the immediate term. The unavoidable budget cuts and reduction in staff numbers which necessitated the closure are still in effect and my Department has neither the staff nor the financial resources to reverse the mission closures decided on by the Government last November. However, as the economic situation improves and in the context of the regular review of the diplomatic network, it may be possible to revisit the matter some time in the future. If the Vatican is prepared to relax its current requirements so as to allow the State-owned Villa Spada to serve as a location for both our embassy to Italy and our embassy to the Holy See, this can be taken into account in any future considerations.

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