Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide in tabular form the total amount allocated by his Department to the operation of Ireland's forthcoming Presidency of the EU; if he will provide direct comparisons with the amount spent by his Department during Ireland's previous presidency in 2004; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47046/12]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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An overarching focus of the Government in planning for Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union during the first half of 2013 is to perform this important function in an efficient and cost-effective manner. An effectively managed Presidency will deliver long-term reputational benefit for Ireland. Short-term benefits include significant benefits for the local economy from an influx of up to 15,000 delegates, press and representatives of NGOs who will use local services including hotels, restaurants, taxis etc. over the six month Presidency period.

The use of Dublin Castle and a small number of other state-owned venues mainly in Dublin to host most Presidency meetings will reduce venue hire, transport and set-up costs, not to mention significantly reducing the “carbon footprint” of the Presidency. The procurement of most logistical requirements for the Presidency is being centralised to reduce costs, reduce administrative burden, and increase efficiencies. Procurement is being carried out on a collaborative basis involving principally my Department, the National Procurement Service and the Office of Public Works. Purchasing is being conducted transparently and on a competitive basis.

As the planning of the operational elements of the 2013 Presidency are more centralised than for our Presidency in 2004 and because both the configuration of Government Departments and the nature of the Presidency role have changed in the interim, some caution should be exercised in making direct comparisons between expenditure in 2003/4 and expenditure linked to the current Presidency. Set out below, and drawn from the Appropriation Accounts for 2003 and 2004 and the Revised Estimates Volume for 2012, is a table showing the expenditure specifically incurred or allocated for the Presidency. In neither case does it take account of expenditure incurred under different account codes that was directed towards the Presidency but which was not directly charged to Presidency allocations.

Allocations for 2013 have not yet been decided but the Government decided in December 2011 to allocate a total budget in the order of €60m over 2012 and 2013 to resource the Presidency, which excludes security costs. This budget is broadly in line with budgets for recent Presidencies hosted by other EU Member-States.