Vol. 463 No. 8
4 Mr. Andrews asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade the plans, if any, he has to host meetings during Ireland's Presidency of the EU; the locations of these meetings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7521/96]
48 Mr. O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade the way in which the finance allocated for the EU Presidency costs will be expended; and the benefits, if any, there will be for Irish tourism. [7467/96]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 4 and 48 together.
I will host a Trade Ministers Seminar on 18-19 September in Dublin Castle. The seminar will enable Trade Ministers of the EU to exchange views among themselves and with the EU Commissioner as well as the director-general of the World Trade Organisation. This will be a very useful opportunity to advance the preparation of the first World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference in December.
My Department proposes to host three meetings in Dublin Castle during the Irish Presidency of the EU, as follows: a meeting of the Export Control Co-ordination Group on 22 July 1996; a meeting of the committee of senior trade officials on 18 September 1996; a meeting of the Export Credit Group on 18 October 1996. It is possible that it will be necessary to hold further meetings in Ireland depending on how issues are developing on Council agendae.
It is envisaged that approximately £30,000 of the £52,000 allocated to my Department towards the costs of the EU Presidency will be expended on the Trade Ministers seminar, including catering and accommodation costs. The balance of funding will be spent mainly on the costs associated with holding the other three meetings.
It is difficult to quantify the benefits arising for Irish tourism from hosting EU meetings in Ireland during the Presidency. It is clear, however, that the convening of meetings by my Department, and indeed by other Government Departments, will provide a unique opportunity to contribute to the promotion of Ireland as a tourism destination and also as an ideal location for conference business.
Will the Minister indicate the nature of a meeting that will take place in Singapore in December? Will he chair it and what will happen arising directly from it?
That matter was not specifically tabled by the Deputy. The meeting will constitute the first ministerial involvement in the World Trade Organisation in December. I expect to chair it and act as President of the Council on behalf of the European Union. All countries are currently drawing up specific agenda for the conference in Singapore. We look forward to proving on that occasion that the World Trade Organisation can stand on its own and will leave Singapore with a clear agenda for the future.
Does the Minister intend to hold any of the meetings he proposes to host here in the main cities outside Dublin? He will participate in many important meetings and I congratulate him and wish him well in that regard.
I am not being narrow in the context of our membership of the EU as the Presidency is a broad canvass, but will the Minister quantify the advantages to tourism from his participation in such important functions?
I do not intend to hold any meetings outside Dublin. Other Ministers and Departments have made arrangements concerning meetings throughout the country. It is difficult to quantify the advantages to tourism but it is important to show the best of Ireland to people who may not have been here before or who have been here on a few occasions. It should be deemed an attractive holiday destination and an island that offers facilities and state of the art equipment for conference business. In terms of conference business, the lead in time can be quite long, but the more people from various countries are involved in meetings of this nature, the more options will be opened for our tourism industry and for business conferences.
I will hear a brief question from Deputy Andrews. The questions we have embarked upon are priority questions to which a rigid time limit applies of 20 minutes only.
Is the Minister disappointed that some of the meetings will not beheld outside Dublin? Does that not show a bias on the part of the Minister for Tourism and Trade against the rest of the country? There is a legitimate complaint by certain tourism interests, particularly in the south west and west, that — for obvious reasons — there has been a larger influx of tourists in the eastern part of the island and that other areas are not getting their fair share. This was an opportunity for the Minister to show his support for that point of view.
We are having repetition.
I support the principle of the Deputy's statement. If one looks at the list of meetings to be held by other Ministers and Departments, one will see that they are spread throughout the country.
We are talking about tourism.
It may well be necessary to hold other meetings depending on the issues which may arise on the various agenda. I will give consideration to holding some of those meetings outside Dublin.
