Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

The recent revelations about expenses incurred by Ministers have shocked and outraged the country. I do not think any Minister set out deliberately to do something like this, or at least I hope not.

Within the understanding of their responsibilities as Ministers, and the requirements of the Ethics in Public Office Act, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government spent €6,500 printing leaflets for delivery in his constituency, which cost a further €4,500. There are in-house printing facilities here and party membership delivers the leaflets. The Minister for Defence incurred a charge of €46,000 a couple of years ago delivering Fianna Fáil leaflets in his constituency, which the taxpayer paid for. This is just not on, as the Taoiseach knows.

In view of this continuing litany of expenses and charges, with €9,000 incurred by the Tánaiste to keep a limousine waiting at a hotel 1.5 km from a meeting in Switzerland, has the Taoiseach introduced changes that clearly require Ministers know in advance that these charges will be incurred so the taxpayer will not be continually outraged by the collation of such charges? Has he introduced a minimum standard for officeholders when they go abroad above which, if they want to stay in a higher class facility, they pay the difference? That way the public would understand that they are there to do their job on behalf of the country. We must not have a continuous litany of gross excess in terms of the expenses incurred by the taxpayer.

In view of the Ethics in Public Office Act, have there been changes on the instruction of the Taoiseach?

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