Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

I have put down Questions Nos. 5 and 7 and I wish to follow up on the Taoiseach's earlier reply. The Taoiseach said that reporters or the media hyped up some of the contexts. The Taoiseach's office issued a press release referring to the launch of a diplomatic offensive. This is the context in which I put down the questions. The Taoiseach has held only one substantive bilateral meeting since then. We have all called in the EU ambassadors. That is regular and does not constitute anything in terms of a diplomatic initiative. That is part of the regular briefings with EU or non-EU ambassadors with whom I regularly interactively engaged when I was Minister for Foreign Affairs. I put it to the Taoiseach that this is normal practice.

The bringing back of our own ambassadors is a regular occurrence as well and this took place long before the Taoiseach came into office. Does the Taoiseach agree that none of this constitutes the diplomatic initiative that the Taoiseach and his office launched? In essence there has been an over-hyping of the contacts.

I am concerned that in the Taoiseach's answer to Question No. 7, among the official trips up to June I see no substantive bilateral meeting with European leaders on the schedule. It is important that this should happen. Does the Taoiseach intend to lead any trade delegations in the coming six months as part of the official trips he plans to undertake during that period?

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