Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade further to Parliamentary Question No. 60 of 22 March 2012, if this review of the working of the election roster has been completed; the outcomes of the review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50037/12]

Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the individual cost of each trip taken by persons as part of Ireland's international election monitoring since the beginning of 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50038/12]

Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 165 and 166 together.

International election monitoring missions play an important role in the promotion of democracy and human rights. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade maintains a roster of observers for election monitoring missions. We aim to ensure that, when requested, Ireland is represented at an appropriate level in international observation missions for both elections and constitutional referendums. Irish observers participate primarily in missions organised by the European Union (EU) and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), but have also been involved in missions organised by the Council of Europe, the United Nations and the Carter Centre. So far in 2012, 57 Irish observers have been involved in missions organised by both the EU and OSCE, across 11 countries.

Observers who participate in missions supported by the Department are entitled to one pre-departure grant of €600 in every twelve month period to cover any costs incurred in preparing for the trip, including vaccinations and other medical expenses. For EU led missions, any additional costs are covered by the European Commission.Observer costs for OSCE-led Missions are met by the participating countries. In Ireland’s case, these funds come from the Irish Aid budget.

The election observation programme is subject to continuous monitoring to ensure it is efficient and effective and provides the best possible value for money. A list in tabular form of the costs for each Irish election observer funded by Irish Aid from January 1^st 2012 to date is set out below. For obvious reasons, the costs associated with long-term observers (LTO) are higher than those for short-term observers (STO).

There are currently some 300 people on the Election Observation Roster. At present, the roster is not open for new members but I am aware that there are quite a number of individuals interested in joining the roster.I am keen to ensure that members of the roster will have the specific skills requested by the OSCE and the EU, including language skills. As previously stated, I have asked officials to carry out a detailed review of the roster and how it works, and to prepare proposals on future membership. I hope that the review will be completed in the near future.

Election Observation Missions 2012 to date

(57 observers on 11 missions)

COUNTRYORGANISATIONROLENAME COST€

January

KazakhstanOSCESTOPatricia Barker 3,643

KazakhstanOSCESTOPaddy Buckenham 3,193

KazakhstanOSCESTOPaul Cosgrave 3,643

KazakhstanOSCESTOMichael Humphreys 3,643

KazakhstanOSCESTOCecilia Keaveney 3,643

February

SenegalEULTODiarmuid Peavoy 0

SenegalEUSTOAidan O’Shea 0

March

RussiaOSCELTOMichael Verling17,029

RussiaOSCESTOGrattan Lynch 4,301

RussiaOSCESTOJulian Clare 3,756

RussiaOSCESTONoreen Kerins 4,301

RussiaOSCESTOChris Andrews 4,301

May

ArmeniaOSCELTOSean O’Callaghan 6,967

ArmeniaOSCESTOAnn Ormonde 3,304

ArmeniaOSCESTOBlaise Treacy 3,304

ArmeniaOSCESTOEdward Horgan 3,304

ArmeniaOSCESTOJames McNamara 3,304

ArmeniaOSCESTOTerence Fleming 3,304

ArmeniaOSCESTOBrian Fagan 3,304

ArmeniaOSCESTOEimear Friel 2,717

Serbia IOSCELTOOrla Cluff 6,827

Serbia IIOSCELTOPeter McMahon 3,685

AlgeriaEULTODorcha Lee 600

AlgeriaEUSTOMary Boland 0

AlgeriaEUSTOPeter Ballagh 0

July

Timor LesteEULTOMary O’Shea 0

September

BelarusOSCELTOPeter Donovan8,086

BelarusOSCESTONoel Brennan 2,775

BelarusOSCESTOJulian Clare 2,230

BelarusOSCESTOPatrick Finneran 2,775

BelarusOSCESTOFinbar O’Sullivan 2,541

BelarusOSCESTODeirdre Grogan 2,857

BelarusOSCESTOMark Long 2,857

BelarusOSCESTORebecca Moynihan 2,775

BelarusOSCESTOAnne Choiseul 2,775

October

GeorgiaOSCELTOEithne MacDermott 6,730

GeorgiaOSCESTOCecilia Keaveney 3,546

GeorgiaOSCESTOEileen McCabe 4,146

GeorgiaOSCESTOJohn O’Connor 4,122

GeorgiaOSCESTOPeter Emerson 4,146

GeorgiaOSCESTOConor O’Clery 4,122

GeorgiaOSCESTOJames Mallon 4,122

GeorgiaOSCESTOLes Allamby 4,122

GeorgiaOSCESTORichard McEvoy 4,122

UkraineOSCELTOSeamus Martin11,473

UkraineOSCELTOMichael Verling10,746

UkraineOSCESTOEric Byrne 3,258

UkraineOSCESTOGeraldine Power 3,425

UkraineOSCESTORaymond Dunne 3,425

UkraineOSCESTOCiaran Kinsella 3,425

UkraineOSCESTOFionnuala Brennan 3,425

UkraineOSCESTOKevin Grogan 3,425

UkraineOSCESTOJulian Clare 2,825

UkraineOSCESTOThomas Bellew 2,827

November

Sierra LeoneEULTOColm Fahy600

Sierra LeoneEUSTOMichael Coyne600

Sierra LeoneEUSTOMichael Boyle600