Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Ministers on tour
The Welsh Government has published its annual report giving details of any gifts received by Ministers, Special Advisors and Trips Abroad here. The information relates to the financial year 2010-2011.
There is nothing exceptional about this information apart from two items. That is that of the total spent on Ministerial overseas visits in 2010-2011 of £25,351 more than half was spent on just two trips.
The first was the well-publicised and criticised trip by the former Environment Minister, Jane Davidson to the Climate Change Conference in Cancun. She took two officials with her on 4 December 2010 at a total cost of £11,926.
The second was a trip by the then Counsel General to Entebbe, Uganda unaccompanied by officials (an official was already in attendance) on 22 October 2010 at a total cost of £2, 216.
I am not clear what either trip achieved. Does anybody else know?
There is nothing exceptional about this information apart from two items. That is that of the total spent on Ministerial overseas visits in 2010-2011 of £25,351 more than half was spent on just two trips.
The first was the well-publicised and criticised trip by the former Environment Minister, Jane Davidson to the Climate Change Conference in Cancun. She took two officials with her on 4 December 2010 at a total cost of £11,926.
The second was a trip by the then Counsel General to Entebbe, Uganda unaccompanied by officials (an official was already in attendance) on 22 October 2010 at a total cost of £2, 216.
I am not clear what either trip achieved. Does anybody else know?
