Vol. 473 No. 2
24 Mr. Callely asked the Taoiseach the total cost to the Exchequer arising out of the use of air transport for all foreign and internal flights by him and the people accompanying him for each of the years 1980 and 1990; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24750/96]
My reply to Question No. 30 of 10 December 1996 provided details, including the costs incurred by my Department, of my usage of air transport for all foreign and internal travel in 1996. I do not consider it an efficient use of administrative time to provide comparative details for 1980 and 1990. The Department's Appropriation Account for the years in question indicate that the total expenditure under the travel and incidental expenses subheads was £192,077 in 1980 and £490,946 in 1990. Some expenditure on travel for the EU Presidency in 1990 was charged to the information and public relations subhead of the Department's Vote and cannot now be easily identified.
25 Mr. Callely asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the total cost to the Exchequer arising out of the use of air transport for all foreign and internal flights by him and the people accompanying him for each of the years 1980 and 1990; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24751/96]
The cost of ministerial air transport provided by the Aer Corps is a matter for the Minister for Defence. The information requested by the Deputy in regard to other air travel for the years 1980, during the term in office of the late Brian Lenihan, and in 1990 during the term in office of Gerard Collins, is not readily available. My Department installed a new computer system in November 1993, information contained on the previous systems cannot be accessed in a way that would immediately identify the information requested by the Deputy. The redeployment of staff resources to elicit this information cannot be justified in this case.
