Vol. 450 No. 8
34 Mr. O'Malley asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade the countries where Ireland's representation, including all the State agencies and the Irish Embassy, is not consolidated under one roof in an Ireland House concept; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5987/95]
The Government is committed to achieving the greatest possible consolidation of resources in "Ireland Houses" wherever possible and I have already set out the considerable progress which has been made towards this goal in my reply of 9 February to Deputies Keogh and McDowell. Since then it has been decided that the new embassies proposed for Hungary, the Czech Republic and Malaysia will also be developed along the lines of the Ireland House concept.
However, in some countries, for practical economic reasons or because the political capital is in a different location to the national commercial centre, it is not feasible to have the embassy and all agencies under one roof. Thus, in the United States, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands and Australia the embassies are located in Washington, Ottawa, Bonn, The Hague and Canberra while the State agencies are located in the main commercial centres. In a number of countries office accommodation for some or all the State agencies has been consolidated but the embassy is separately located; Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Sweden, and Great Britain are in this category. Only in Spain and Poland does An Bord Tráchtála have stand alone accommodation separate from the embassy and other agencies in the same city.
As I have indicated previously, further possible consolidation of our representation abroad is kept under review by the foreign earnings committee so as to ensure that the most effective use is made of the resources available.
