Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Independent)
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539. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide details of all official foreign trips he and Ministers of State in his Department plan to take between now and the end of 2015; if he will provide the persons he and ministers of state in his Department will be meeting on these trips; the purpose of the trips; the duration of the trips; if there are plans to use all of these trips to promote Ireland as a good place for doing business and as a destination for foreign direct investment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48033/14]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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My Department performs a wide range of functions in pursuit of Ireland’s values and interests overseas. These include advancing reconciliation and cooperation on the island of Ireland; representing and advancing Government policies with other States and in international organisations; economic, trade and cultural promotion; frontline consular and passport services to Irish citizens; engaging with Irish communities abroad; and programme management, particularly in Irish Aid priority countries. These tasks require extensive engagement with our international partners, including through face-to-face Ministerial meetings.Trade promotion and economic messaging are key elements in all visits abroad undertaken by Government Ministers. Every effort is made to ensure that, as far as is practicable, opportunities are taken for a substantive economic and promotional dimension to all official visits. An intensive programme of Ministerial-led trade missions is a key commitment in the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs in 2014. Planning is underway for the programme of trade missions in 2015. It should be noted also that a substantial programme of Ministerial visits will be planned to coincide with St. Patrick’s Day celebrations around the world.Between 14 and 19 December, Minister of State Murphy, who has responsibility for European Affairs, will attend the Foreign Affairs, General Affairs and European Councils in Brussels.

Next year's plans for all Ministers at my Department are still under development but I expect to travel to New York in late September 2015 to participate in the General Assembly of the United Nations and to address that body on Irish foreign policy priorities. I will also meet with Foreign Ministers and UN leaders there, to discuss a range of international issues as well as bilateral issues and Ireland’s candidature for election to a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council in 2020. Given the importance of our economic relationship with the United States, I anticipate, as on previous visits, to prioritise opportunities to advance our economic interests and will work closely with the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and Tourism Ireland on an appropriate economic promotion programme.

In addition, I plan to attend EU related meetings, including meetings of the Foreign Affairs Council and Informal Meetings of EU Foreign Ministers, on a regular basisthroughout 2015. I expect that my colleagues will be similarly engaged on EU and other matters.

My schedule over the coming months will include a visit to Kiev and, following my recent visit to Cairo to participate in the Gaza reconstruction conference, I intend to visit the Middle East at the earliest opportunity.

The Minister for Diaspora Affairs, Jimmy Deenihan T.D., will travel to London and Birmingham on the 15-16th January 2015. The purpose of the visit is to engage with the Irish Communities in these cities, including members of the business community. He will also travel to Washington on 21-22nd January next where he will have a series of meetings on the issue of US Immigration Reform. While the Minister’s main role is to engage with Irish communities overseas, in those contacts and others, he will avail of every opportunity that arises to promote Ireland as a good place to do business and as a destination for foreign direct investment.