Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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27. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if there will be an increase in the number of staff in his Department in 2018 particularly in the areas covering Brexit in Dublin and Brussels; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11818/18]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department is taking steps to reinforce existing missions, including in key partner countries, to address the impact of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. Already sixteen additional staff members have been assigned to our Embassies in London, Paris and Berlin and to Ireland’s Permanent Representation to the European Union in Brussels.

There are plans to significantly enhance Ireland’s networks over the coming years in the context of the Global Footprint initiative. My Department will require additional staff resources, both in Dublin and overseas, to meet the ambitions of this initiative to 2025.

The process has commenced with the recent Government decisions to open new Embassies in Santiago, Chile; Bogotá, Colombia; Amman, Jordan; and Wellington, New Zealand; and new Consulates General in Vancouver, western Canada and Mumbai, India, on a phased basis from this year.

As this process develops, the locations for the deployment of additional resources – both in the EU and further afield - will be identified on the basis of impact and influence, including the potential to deliver in terms of our economic and political interests and provide clear benefits for the State.