Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 534: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the cost of providing transport including their official car to Ministers of State in his Department and staff for each year from 1997 to date in 2007. [33678/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The cost to my Department for 1997 for transport costs incurred by the then Minster was € 13,189. During the period July 1997 to date no Minister of State was formally assigned to my Department. However, Minister of State, Máire Hoctor, who is Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, has special responsibility for older people, areas of which fall within the remit of my Department. There are no costs attached to her office from my Department.

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 535: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the cost of his using public transport for every year since 1997 to date in 2007; and the cost of providing similar services to Ministers of State and staff for the same period. [33693/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Details of public transport expenditure are not recorded separately but are included in the overall Travel and Subsistence subhead. There is a significant level of travel expenditure in my Department's budget, arising from the dispersed nature of my Department's services and, inter alia, the fact that a considerable level of investigative work must be carried out in the course of delivering the Department's services. I have outlined in the table details of the total travel expenditure which would include bus/train fares, car mileage and other miscellaneous domestic travel costs.