Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 113: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the position in relation to the Irish Consul Office in Ecuador; when a consul will be appointed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21677/05]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I have recently approved the appointment of a new honorary consul in Ecuador. However, before an appointment can be confirmed, the agreement of the Ecuadorian authorities must be obtained. Once this has been received I will proceed with the appointment.

Pending finalisation of the appointment, Irish citizens in Ecuador may seek consular assistance from the embassy of any other EU member state in Quito. They may also contact the Embassy of Ireland in Buenos Aires, which is monitoring the situation in Ecuador in relation to consular assistance.

Honorary consuls are not full-time employees of the State but are private individuals who undertake, in addition to their normal work, to provide a range of consular services to Irish citizens abroad. As a condition of their appointment, honorary consuls undertake to put in place the necessary staff and office resources to provide these consular services.