Mr. David Cooney:

The Government decided to open eight new missions which comprised five embassies and three consulates general. We have 73 missions with a further two in Armagh and Belfast. In addition to the eight openings, the Government decided to close the embassy in Lesotho. The rationale behind that closure is that while we have had a programme there of very long standing, there are absorption capacities in Lesotho. It has become a middle income country and is the most wealthy country per capitaamong those in which we have aid missions. The assessment after consideration was that the remaining programme in Lesotho could be handled effectively from South Africa. Pretoria is very close. We will maintain a small office but it will not be staffed by headquarters staff. It will be staffed by a local employee. The rationale is sound although it is never a happy occasion to close an embassy or to pull out of a country with which we have had a long relationship. In terms of rationalisation, we felt the resources could be used better elsewhere.
In terms of the embassies we are opening, the emphasis is on Asia where three of the missions will be located. We will have embassies in Indonesia and Thailand and a consulate general in Hong Kong. The lack of embassies in Indonesia and Thailand has represented a significant gap in our service. Certainly, pressure has been applied through the Global Irish Network and the three meetings of the forum have all pointed to this absence. I am delighted to be able to plug that gap. Indonesia is a huge country with enormous potential. Thailand is a very significant economy. Having missions on the ground in those states will allow us to exploit to a much greater extent the economic potential there. The decisions to open the missions have been welcomed greatly by the Irish communities in those countries but also by the agencies. The absence to date of a consulate general in Hong Kong has been a significant gap in our network of missions. There is huge potential there.

We feel we will be able to exploit that considerably working with the agencies, which are in Hong Kong. We think that having an embassy will assist in dealing with Chinese authorities. They are very focused on the state. It is very difficult for companies to do business in China even in a place like Hong Kong without the backing and presence of the state.

Moving on to the US, we have been very pleased with the activities of the consulate general we opened in Atlanta a few years ago. It has made a real difference on a very small budget. One career consul is in that consulate.