Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 953: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the annual cost to his Department of Ministerial expenses related to overseas travel engagement; and the event and the expense for same for each of the past ten years. [33082/09]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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A summary of the information requested, where available, is set out in the tables below for the period from 1999 — 2003 and for the period from 2004 to the end of September 2009. Detailed information on the cost of attending engagements overseas is currently being compiled in respect of my own travel since June 2007 and will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as possible. However, collation of the costs of every individual event attended by Ministers and Ministers of State for each of the past ten years would involve an inordinate amount of time and resources.

This applies particularly to expenses paid prior to the introduction of the current financial accounting system on 01 January 2004. However, the cost of overseas travel and subsistence claims made by Ministers and Ministers of State at the Department prior to that date is available and is set out in the following table.

Overseas Travel & Subsistence claims by Ministers and Ministers of State 1999 to 2003

The current financial accounting system facilitates more detailed retrieval of information on different claims and expenses. The table below sets out the expenses paid in connection with overseas travel engagements by Ministers and Ministers of State in my Department from 01 January 2004 to the end of September 2009 including air fares, accommodation, transport costs and travel and subsistence claims made by the Ministers.

However, some costs incurred on behalf of Ministers during Ireland's presidency of the EU in the first half of 2004 have been recorded under a general EU presidency account. Many of the costs directly attributed to Ministers cannot readily be extracted from this account.