Ministerial Travel

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 May 2014

Tuesday, 13 May 2014

Questions (543)

Terence Flanagan

Question:

543. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide details of all official foreign trips he and Ministers of State in his Department intend to take between now and the end of 2014; if he will detail whom they will be meeting with on these trips; the purpose of the trip; the duration of the trip; if there are plans to use all of these trips to promote Ireland as a good place for doing business and as a destination for foreign direct investment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21853/14]

Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

In the context of my scheduled official foreign trips, they can be categorised into:

1. Attendance at EU Agriculture Council of Ministers Meetings, where I will promote Irish national agricultural interests:

- 19 May, Brussels

- 16/17 June, Luxembourg

- 14 July, Brussels

- 15 September, Brussels

- 29/30 September, Milan

- 13/14 October, Luxembourg

- 10/11 November, Brussels

- 15/16 December, Brussels

I will also take the opportunity of these meetings to engage with my colleagues in the Council and with the EU Commission and, where possible, the European Parliament.

2. Trade Missions and the promotion of the Irish agri-food and related sectors, including inward investment.

Two trade promotion visits in 2014 are already scheduled and outlined below. Because of some business confidential elements relating to some of these visits, I am unable to provide the Deputy with more details but the visits will include political and trade meetings.

- 28 May: UK

- 4/5 June: Netherlands