The Government has defended moves by senior Ministers to conduct EU meetings in their home towns during Ireland's presidency of the EU next year.
With plans now at an advanced stage for the six-month presidency, beginning in January, it emerged yesterday that certain Cabinet members will bring some of the most senior political figures in Europe to their home constituencies for EU meetings.
EU Ministers will visit Co Kildare courtesy of the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, and Co Offaly courtesy of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen.
Mr McCreevy will chair an Ecofin meeting of Finance and Economics Ministers at Punchestown, while Mr Cowen has scheduled a meeting of EU Foreign Ministers for Tullamore. Both meetings will take place in April.
The Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, will chair an informal meeting of Environment Ministers in Waterford in May, while the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, has organised a cardiovascular health conference in Cork in February.
With teams of officials likely to accompany Ministers to such meetings, the Minister of State for Europe, Mr Dick Roche, defended the choice of location for the meetings as an effort to portray Ireland in a positive light.
"Spreading the good word about the country is part of the positive spin-off of the presidency," he said.
Asked whether the public could be excused for adopting a cynical outlook on the location of some meetings, Mr Roche said the choice of locations was appropriate.
He denied the choice of towns could be "conceived as a ready-up between Ministers". The Government was trying to bring Europe to people in the regions, he said; it was correct to do that "as far as is possible".
The Wicklow TD added: "There will be one or two events in my own county, and I regard that as very appropriate."
Mr Roche said the smooth accession of 10 new EU members in May would be the main objective of the presidency. There was also a significant chance that the EU inter-governmental conference on the new EU constitution would have to be completed during the presidency.
"Counties hosting events and meetings include Dublin, Kerry, Waterford, Offaly, Wicklow, Kildare, Galway, Cork and other counties. Each meeting will involve hundreds of people, many of whom will be visiting here for the first time."
There will be an informal meeting of Employment and Social Affairs Ministers next January in Galway. There will also be a competitiveness conference in Shannon, Co Clare, in April, and an informal meeting of Agriculture Ministers in Killarney, Co Kerry, in May.