Jim O'Keeffe (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 741: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the amount spent by him and Ministers of State, officials, persons in agencies, offices or bodies under the remit of his Department, on foreign travel in the period 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2008; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1440/09]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is fully compliant with the Department of Finance guidelines on foreign travel. My Department also operates its own internal travel guidelines and practises which ensure cost effective travel practises, both in Headquarters and throughout our network of 75 diplomatic missions abroad. The central aims of the travel policy, which embraces both Ministers and officials, are to minimise official travel costs and to achieve value for money for expenditure necessarily incurred, consistent with the effective discharge of official duties.

In 2008, the estimated total cost of foreign travel undertaken by my Department, was €5,966,736. Of this overall figure, €3,862,380 was incurred by officers based in Ireland on official travel abroad, with expenditure of €2,104,356 incurred by Missions abroad either on travel within countries of their accreditation many Ambassadors while resident in one country are accredited to two, three or more other countries — or on returning to Ireland on official business. The foreign travel costs incurred within the Irish Aid budget, which involves in particular travel to, and within, developing countries in Africa, including for audit purposes, account for over a third of the overall travel expenditure for my Department.

The Department's travel budget, as provided for in the Estimates, will reflect an 11% reduction in 2009 over 2008. In light of this, I have asked my officials to undertake a further review of current travel policies to identify even greater cost efficiencies, where possible, while ensuring continued satisfactory representation of Ireland overseas. There are no State Agencies operating under the remit of my Department.