asked the Minister for External Affairs if he will state the number of our nationals who applied to our representatives in France, Spain and other countries for financial aid due to their being stranded on holidays on the occasion of the general strike in France last August, and the amounts allowed the applicants.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Stranded Tourists.
asked the Minister for External Affairs if he is aware that the meagre allowance lent to Irish nationals during the recent general strike in France was in some instances sufficient only to enable the applicants to leave the country in which they made the application but not sufficient to enable them to complete their journeys to Ireland, and that some of our nationals found it necessary to seek assistance from the representatives of other countries, due to the unrealistic attitude at our own legations, and received more generous loans; and, if so, if he will make a statement in the matter.
With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 56 and 57 together.
The numbers of our citizens who sought financial aid from our missions in France, Spain and other countries. during the period of the French strike in August last was: France, 73; Spain, 9; other countries, 16.
The amounts allowed in respect of individual applicants varied between £1 and £51, according to their circumstances and requirements, and totalled as follows: France, £491; Spain, £31; other countries, £172.
On the 12th August, a few days after the strike began, the Department of Finance announced that it was prepared to make available reasonablecurrency facilities to enable Irish visitors to France or neighbouring countries who might be experiencing hardships as a result of the French strike, to obtain alternative transport to Ireland and to maintain themselves until such transport became available.
The Deputy refers to the "meagre allowance" lent to Irish nationals by our missions. There was, in fact, no fixed allowance laid down. At the beginning of the strike, our embassy at Paris was immediately authorised to provide assistance to Irish citizens affected by the French strike to whatever extent was necessary in the separate circumstances of individual cases. As an example of how this worked in practice, a sum of as much as £67 was advanced by the embassy to a party of three persons who wished to take a taxi to the coast.
No complaints were made at any time either to the Department or any of our missions in the countries concerned, that the assistance offered in any individual case was inadequate. On the contrary, as Deputies will be aware, public tribute was paid to the staff of our embassy at Paris for the manner in which they attended to the needs of Irish citizens. Letters were also received by my Department from a number of private individuals expressing their appreciation of the services rendered to them, while abroad, by our missions in those countries, in that difficult period.
The Deputy states that some of our citizens found it necessary to seek assistance from representatives of other countries, due to the unrealistic attitude at our own legations and received more generous loans. This is not so. The only instances of which I am aware, in which Irish citizens approached the representatives of other countries for financial assistance, were in certain provincial centres in France and Spain where no Irish representative was available. In these cases, which involved only ten of our citizens, the British consuls at those centres were good enough to advance the necessary funds on the responsibility of and with the approval of the appropriateIrish Mission. The sums so advanced were refunded immediately by the Irish Mission concerned to the consuls.
In the case of France, the ambassador went out of his way to be extremely helpful and to oblige the Irish citizens who were in distress, but in the case of Spain, is it not a fact that the British Embassy in Spain advanced money to an extent three times greater than the Irish Embassies either in France or Spain to those who were in distress?
No.
Is the Minister further aware that the British Embassy seemed to have a much freer hand in assisting British citizens than the Irish Legations had in assisting Irish citizens who were stranded? Is the Minister also aware of the fact that all the Irish citizens who were stranded in France at the time owe a very deep debt of gratitude to Mr. Cremins for his kindness? May I ask him further, in view of the fact that what happened may happen again in the future, to ask the Irish Embassies in Spain and in France to be a little more generous, to be at least as generous as the British Embassies can be in those countries?
I do not want to object to Deputy Flanagan boosting the British, but I do object to him slandering Irish officials on how they acted in the exercise of their individual judgments in these cases in giving sufficient to our citizens to get home.
I have not slandered any Irish official.
Question No. 58.
It is the Minister's ignorance.