Vol. 400 No. 9
2 Mrs. Owen asked the Taoiseach if his Department were responsible for the costs of a rehearsal dinner in Malahide Castle, County Dublin prior to the EC Summit on 25 June 1990; whether his Department issued the invitations; the number of invitations issued and to whom; and the cost of the dinner to the State.
There were no costs incurred by my Department, or by any other Department, for the occasion to which the Deputy has referred.
Would the Taoiseach confirm to the House that such a rehearsal did take place, and that the information which appeared in an article by Terry Keane on Sunday, 24 June 1990 which said such a dinner took place and that very few of the guests turned up is correct; and could he tell us exactly how much the dinner cost and who attended?
As I have already told the Deputy there was no cost to public funds involved. Therefore, the rest of the question does not arise.
With respect, the rest of the question does apply. Did the Taoiseach's Department issue the invitations, how many invitations were issued and to whom?
It was a private dinner party.
Can the Taoiseach confirm the article in the Sunday paper which said that nobody turned up at the dinner.
Basically, it is none of the Deputy's business.
I would ask the Taoiseach not to be rude. I have clearly found the Taoiseach's Achilles' heel, or a matter of embarrassment to him. Can he confirm whether the information in The Sunday Independent was accurate and if it was inaccurate have his Department sought an apology?
The question appertains to the costs of a dinner.
I am not concerned about the accuracy or otherwise of newspaper reports.
You should be.
The Deputy is entitled to ask about expenditure from public funds. I am very glad to be able to say, I am sure to her disappointment, that there was no cost of any kind to public funds.
Could the Taoiseach tell me——
A final question, Deputy. This is leading to argument.
The Castle is owned by Dublin County Council and leased out to Bord Fáilte. Was there a cost to Bord Fáilte, perhaps, for the dinner?
That is a separate question.
There were no public funds of any kind involved.
No public funds at all?
No public funds of any kind. I want to tell the Deputy she is on one great big loser by all this niggling begrudgery——
No bullying.
A Cheann Comhairle, could you ask the Taoiseach to be a bit more courteous? Just because I have raised a question that is causing him embarrassment, he should not be allowed to insult a Member of this House.
This should not lead to disorder. I am going on to Question No. 3, Deputy Spring's question.
The Deputy asked on the basis that there was some cost to public funds. I am very happy to be able to tell her that there was none. I am also glad to be able to point out to her that she is on one great big loser by all these niggling begrudging questions about the Presidency, because the people of Malahide are delighted that this Presidency dinner in Malahide was such a great success and Malahide Castle, as a result, has now achieved world renowned status.
They were all invited in their thousands.
