The Government last year spent more than £9 million on participating in a major trade exhibition in Germany, writes Joe Humphreys, despite official reservations about the value of taking part, the C&AG report has found.
The report said the agencies represented on the Foreign Earnings Committee - which monitors the combined Irish promotional effort abroad - felt representation at EXPO 2000 in Hanover would not be justified on trade or investment promotion grounds. The Department of Finance concurred with the assessment.
However, the Government approved a proposal by the Tβnaiste, Ms Harney, to participate at an indicative cost of £5-6 million. By August 1999, the estimated cost had risen to £9.1 million, partly as a result of delays in dismantling the Irish pavilion.
The C&AG was concerned about the value for money of the expenditure and sought the views of the accounting officer at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. The officer conceded that "with hindsight" a target of attaining £250,000-£500,000 in private sponsorship was "overly ambitious". Just £10,000 in cash contributions and £34,000-£45,000 in other sponsorship was reportedly received.