A number of junior ministers flew business class on their St Patrick’s Day trips while their senior ministers flew economy, the Irish Mirror has learned.
Of the eight ministers who flew business class, four were Ministers
of State. In three of these cases, the senior cabinet minister in their department flew in economy class.
As part of this year’s St Patrick’s Day trips abroad, the Government sent 36 representatives to 74 cities in 44 countries. The Irish Mirror contacted all Government departments to inquire whether their ministers and their delegations travelled business class.
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All departments responded except for Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s Department of the Taoiseach and Tanaiste Micheal Martin’s Department of Foreign Affairs. The Irish Mirror saw Mr Varadkar travelling in business class on an Aer Lingus flight to Washington. His delegation flew economy.
The Irish Mirror understands that the Tanaiste also flew business class while his delegation was in economy on his trip to New York. Seven other ministers or Ministers of State flew business class.
This includes Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue and his delegation who flew to New Zealand and Enterprise Minister Simon Coveney and his delegation who went to Australia. Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Martin Heydon also flew business class to South Korea with his delegation.
Ministers of State Thomas Byrne, Niall Collins and Josepha Madigan all flew business class while the senior ministers in their departments flew economy.
Junior Sports Minister Byrne flew business class to Texas. His delegation, consisting of his special adviser and private secretary, also flew business class. Catherine Martin, senior minister in the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, and her delegation flew economy class to California, where she visited LA and San Diego.
A spokesperson for the department said Minister Byrne flew business class “in line with the regulations governing official travel and in light of the scheduled flying time”.
Minister Collins, who is a Minister of State in the Department of Higher Education, flew business class from Dublin to the Philippines and from Malaysia to Heathrow in London. Simon Harris, the Cabinet Minister in the Department, flew economy class to San Francisco, USA, and Vancouver, Canada.
Minister of State at the Department of Education Josepha Madigan flew business class to the UAE and Qatar, while Education Minister Norma Foley flew economy class to Philadelphia and New York.
