Vol. 476 No. 7
63 Mr. Callely asked the Taoiseach his official duties, if any, on St. Patrick's Day; the official duties, if any, of the Ministers of State at his Department; if so, the duration of his duties and his visit; the number of people in his delegation; if he will list these people; the total cost and related costs in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8055/97]
Regarding official duties in the course of my St. Patrick's Day visit to the United States I refer the Deputy to my reply to Questions Nos. 1 to 8, inclusive, of today's date. Six people accompanied me on my visit: Mrs. Bruton; Second Secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs; Assistant Secretary, Department of the Taoiseach; Government Press Secretary; Private Secretary to the Taoiseach and a Garda security officer.
Deputy Carey, Minister of State, visited Paris from 15 March to 18 March. He was accompanied by his private secretary and his special adviser. His main engagements were: as a follow up to the 1996 Cultural Exchange l'Imaginaire Irlandais he attended at La Villette where traditional Irish musicians and dancers participated in a work shop. Among them were the Kilfenora Céilí band and Sharon Shannon; attending a business lunch organised by Aer Rianta, Aer Lingus, Brittany Ferries and Irish Ferries for French travel journalists; attending Mass and a fete for the Irish community at the Irish College on Sunday 16 March; attending a reception hosted by the Irish Ambassador for the Irish community on St. Patrick's Day.
The costs in relation to these two visits have not yet been determined.
