Kehoe's annual junket for Paddy's day, guess where....

vicwatson

Lebanon:eek:, ha ha Lebanon , like we do trade with them, he should just fúckin stay there the useless piece of crap

And the full list of goon trips as per AH

Government programme for St Patrick's Day 2014:

Taoiseach Enda Kenny - United States
Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore - France
Minister Michael Noonan - Canada
Minister Brendan Howlin - China
Minister Richard Bruton - Italy
Minister Joan Burton - New York, USA
Minister Jimmy Deenihan - San Francisco, USA
Minister Pat Rabbitte - London & Birmingham, England
Minister Phil Hogan - United Arab Emirates
Minister Alan Shatter - Mexico
Minister Simon Coveney - New Zealand & eastern Australia
Minister Frances Fitzgerald - Japan & South Korea
Minister James Reilly - Massachusetts & Ohio, USA
Minister Leo Varadkar - Georgia, USA
Attorney General Máire Whelan - Washington DC, USA
Minister of State Paul Kehoe - Lebanon
Minister of State Jan O'Sullivan - Scotland
Minister of State Dinny McGinley - Pennsylvania, USA
Minister of State John Perry - Spain
Minister of State Michael Ring - The Netherlands
Minister of State Kathleen Lynch - Vietnam
Minister of State Fergus O'Dowd - Germany
Minister of State Sean Sherlock - Illinois & Kansas, USA
Minister of State Ciaran Cannon - Romania
Minister of State Alan Kelly - western Australia
Minister of State Alex White - Russia
Minister of State Tom Hayes - Norway
Minister of State Paschal Donohoe - Belgium & Luxembourg
Minister of State Joe Costello - Singapore

paulaa

I doubt that exports worth €100 million is anything to sniff at . Perhaps you didn't realise that such a market is now open again to us.

Lebanon reopens €100m market to Irish meat after 13-year ban

“The Lebanese market is one of huge potential for Irish exporters as they currently import 60% of beef into a domestic market worth €100m annually. I am confident that Irish exporters can regain their slice of that market and grow it further over time.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/farming/general/lebanon-reopens-100m-market-to-irish-meat-after-13-year-ban-256192.html

vicwatson

paulaa wrote: »

I doubt that exports worth €100 million is anything to sniff at . Perhaps you didn't realise that such a market is now open again to us.

I doubt we've exported €100 million worth of meat to Lebanon in the past year, Perhaps you didn't read the article ??

Since when is he Minister for Agriculture ?

paulaa

The whole point I was making was it doesn't matter who goes to what country as long as they cement trade between those countries and us.

As stated clearly in the article the ban on Ireland (the reason why we did not trade with Lebanon in the last several years) is now lifted and there is a slice of their lucrative market to be had.

Apologies if I misread your post, it came across as if you didn't know that Ireland used to export to Lebanon and has the chance to do so again.What we think of Paul Kehoe is not the issue imo

allthedoyles

Its not a trade mission ................Its a diplomatic mission as Minister of State at the Department of Defence .

paulaa

allthedoyles wrote: »

Its not a trade mission ................Its a diplomatic mission as Minister of State at the Department of Defence .

I think most people would understand that it's not purely a trade mission. However diplomacy and cooperation don't do any harm in helping trade deals along.

Judgement Day

Unless brown envelopes are changing hands I can't see the point of these junkets. Surely business people in these countries are already happy to do business in Ireland without some useless politico appearing with them for a photo opportunity. They are hardly sitting in the Lebanon waiting for Paul Kehoe to appear before deciding whether or not to buy Irish beef.

paulaa

I think they should have cancelled these trips until the country is in better shape. However they are going to go whether we like it or not so they might as well try to sell Ireland as a country to do business with.

I think they would be better served inviting groups of business people here and showcasing what we have to offer.

vicwatson

paulaa wrote: »

The whole point I was making was it doesn't matter who goes to what country as long as they cement trade between those countries and us.

As stated clearly in the article the ban on Ireland (the reason why we did not trade with Lebanon in the last several years) is now lifted and there is a slice of their lucrative market to be had.

Apologies if I misread your post, it came across as if you didn't know that Ireland used to export to Lebanon and has the chance to do so again.What we think of Paul Kehoe is not the issue imo

Apology accepted.

Bit of affection for useless Kehoe have we?

allthedoyles wrote: »

Its not a trade mission ................Its a diplomatic mission as Minister of State at the Department of Defence .

He's going to shake hands with 400 Irish Soldiers on the doss out in Lebanon.

paulaa wrote: »

I think most people would understand that it's not purely a trade mission. However diplomacy and cooperation don't do any harm in helping trade deals along.

Specially when you're on a junket and the taxpayer is paying for the "mission"

paulaa wrote: »

I think they should have cancelled these trips until the country is in better shape. However they are going to go whether we like it or not so they might as well try to sell Ireland as a country to do business with.

A prime example of the Irish attitude of apathy, and part of the reason why Irish politics is so rotten to the core. Ugh

The Irish electorate are so part of the problem and not the solution

Marhay70

I suppose the politicians would argue they are damned if they do and damned if they don't, i.e. if 500 jobs go to Wales from a Chinese electronics company, people will be complaining that if Kenny had spent more time courting the Chinese, these could have replaced Driver Harris or the like.
However, most peoples' perception of these junkets are that they are one long pissup and politicians need to be seen to be delivering the goods.

vicwatson

Sales people to sell Ireland

Ministers stay at home and get working at solving the massive amount of problems we have

blindsider

PK has never struck me as the most cerebral. On the rare occasion I've heard him interviewed, he struggled to follow a reasonably complex argument, and was unable to contribute usefully.

His 'shmoozing' skills have never struck me as being great. He is Chief Whip & MoS to The Taoiseach (and Defence) - at face value a significant and powerful portfolio - but it isn't. He's just not a heavyweight.

Still, that's not the end of the world - he could deliver value to Wexford in other ways - the problem is, he doesn't. (From what I can see anyway! And I'm not going to get into an argument over what he has and hasn't delivered - I'm not going there.)

Lebanon - well, I'm sure he'll visit the 340 Irish troops who are there presently - it's a nice PR exercise, and I'm sure the troops will be delighted* to see him. Otherwise, it's a pointless trip.

I'd love to see a cost/Benefit analysis of these trips - but I suspect that the Dept of Foreign Affairs wouldn't know a CBA if it strolled up and bit them. Ah shur - it's Paddy's Day and it'll be grand so it will - just grand.

(*The troops may not, in fact, be delighted. But their training etc will prevent them from telling Deputy Kehoe this, and he will be none the wiser. It'll be grand.)

Marhay70

vicwatson wrote: »

Sales people to sell Ireland

Ministers stay at home and get working at solving the massive amount of problems we have

Who would these sales people be and would they get access to those that matter? This, whether we like it or not, is how diplomacy works.

paulaa

vicwatson wrote: »

Apology accepted.

Bit of affection for useless Kehoe have we?

I still don't think you read the article or know anything about trade with Lebanon lol
Your last comment is just purile . I don't have much time for any politician of any hue and I'm way too old to to think one of them is any better than the other

A prime example of the Irish attitude of apathy, and part of the reason why Irish politics is so rotten to the core. Ugh

The Irish electorate are so part of the problem and not the solution

Are you not one of the electorate ?

Seriously, I'd love to know what you are doing to change things ? Are you considering running in the next election and how would you change the current system ?