Jim O'Keeffe (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 453: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the proportion of the cost of each tribunal made up of legal fees, and the amount of money spent on legal fees in respect of tribunals in each of the years since 1997, under the aegis of his Department. [34553/06]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy asks for details of legal costs relating to tribunals operating under the aegis of my Department since 1997. The Department of Foreign Affairs has not established any tribunals in that period. However, on 28 May 2002 the Irish and British Governments appointed Justice Cory to conduct an investigation of allegations of collusion in a number of cases, arising from a commitment made at the Weston Park talks in 2001. The cost of the Inquiry was shared between the two Governments.

I advised the Deputy on 11 October 2006 that the total cost of the investigation to the State was €341,168.90. It has since come to my attention that a further payment of €1,639.53 came under this category. This brings the total cost to the exchequer to €342,808.43. It is estimated that of this amount the total spent on legal fees was €226,069.59, of which €187,200.19 was paid in 2003 and €38,869.40 in 2004.