Vol. 462 No. 8
57 Mr. D. Ahern asked the Taoiseach whether he has approved the acceptance by the Attorney General of an invitation to a conference organised by the Bilderberg Group in 1995; whether the Attorney General attended; the cost, if any, to the Exchequer; the matters discussed at this conference; whether the Attorney General reported on this conference to either him or to any other Minister/Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5447/96]
In June 1995 with my prior permission the Attorney General attended a meeting, organised by the Bilderberg Conference in Switzerland. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss a number of current issues on international affairs. The Attorney General attended as an invited guest, not as a representative of the Government. Consequently, he did not discuss Government policy at the meeting. The only expense incurred by the Exchequer was travel expenses, which amounted to £772.50 I received a verbal report on the Attorney General's attendence at the meeting.
