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MORE THAN €1.3 million has been spent by the government hiring private jets for the Taoiseach and Tánaiste in the twelve months to June, as a replacement for its ailing Learjet.
Records obtained by The Journal under the Freedom of Information Act show that, in total, 18 trips were taken by the Government during that time: 11 were by former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar; five were by current Taoiseach Simon Harris; and were two by Tánaiste Micheál Martin.
The government has been forced to hire private jets due to the unreliability of its Learjet, which was formerly used for such trips but which in recent years has been plagued by technical issues.
The 18 trips included visits to Egypt and Israel, where commercial options were not feasible due to security and timing; however, the majority of the trips taken were short-haul flights to Brussels, Paris and Munich.
For example, in February, the government spent €73,000 hiring a Bombardier Challenger 350 for then-Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to attend the Munich Security Conference.
Eight of the trips in the 12 months to June saw the Taoiseach fly to Brussels for EU summits and conferences.
Those two-hour return flights generally cost in the region of €45,000, though more recently the Taoiseach made stops in Warsaw and Zurich before returning to Dublin, which added significantly to the total cost.
In total, more than €430,000 was spent on these trips to Brussels.
Meanwhile, records show Simon Harris also made stops in Cork and Kerry when returning from Brussels, before taking 45-minute flights back to Dublin.
Emissions from private jets are known to be significantly worse than commercial flights and any other form of travel.
Much fuel is burned during takeoff and landing, meaning short trips with many stops can contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions.
Since 2020, all government departments have been required to offset the emissions produced by official air travel, paying into the government’s Climate Action Fund.
Records obtained by The Journal show that the three most expensive trips taken in the 12 months to June each cost more than €100,000.
In November last year, €158,000 was spent for the Tánaiste’s trip to Cairo and Tel Aviv, while almost €110,000 was spent on then-Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s two-day visit to the Balkans in January this year, when he met with senior politicians from Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia.
At the time of Varadkar’s trip, he spoke about the unreliability of the Learjet and said that it was “not possible to visit three countries in two days using commercial aircraft”.
The most expensive trip, totalling €197,500, was taken by Tánaiste Micheál Martin in April this year, when he visited the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza - though there were no other flight options on this trip due to security issues.
The Tánaiste and 12 others first flew to Cairo, where he met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry before flying to El Arish airport, some 50km west of the border with Gaza.
Another trip taken by then-Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in March this year came close to costing six figures, when the government spent over €97,000 hiring a Bombardier Challenger 605 to take him to Bucharest.
The Taoiseach’s official diary shows he met with both the President and Prime Minister of Romania during the two-day trip, before attending the European People’s Party conference of which Fine Gael is a member.
The figures above do not include the costs for two more trips in which a private jet was hired.
In March 2022, the government hired a private jet to take the Taoiseach to Paris and then the UK for almost €30,000.
Another trip not included in the above figures was the Taoiseach’s recent trip to the UK in July for the meeting of the European Political Community and bilateral with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
The Department of Defence is still awaiting an invoice for this trip so its cost is unknown.
The hiring of private jets has become more commonplace as a result of technical issues that have plagued the Government’s own Learjet, leaving it out of action for long periods.
While an internal Defence Forces report suggested that the unreliability of the aircraft in 2023 may have been “somewhat of an anomaly”, with it previously having a “good rate of serviceability”, the decision was made to replace the ailing Learjet.
In November last year, a tender was published seeking the successor to the Learjet, with the government set to spend €45 million on the aircraft.
That came a month after Micheál Martin was forced to spend the night in Luxembourg as a result of technical issues with the Air Corps plane he was due to travel home on.
A spokesperson for the Department of Defence said “following a decision taken last year to no longer use the Learjet for ministerial transport, and pending its replacement, the Department procured the services of a Chartered Commercial Operator. This contingency service was procured competitively”.
They added, “a competitive process for the procurement of a new government jet is underway. The intention is that the acquisition phase will be complete and an award of contract will be made this year”.
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Her private jet? So she speaks about climate change and the need to protect the climate and she’s flying around in a private jet. Do as I say not as I do
@Ger Whelan: YAWN
@Anthony Burke: You tired Anthony?
More populist SH 1 T coming from this man.
You’d think as a Leader of this country he’d have better things to be at,another Varadkar
@Stephen Brennan: Does your Mammy let you have a phone?
@martin lawlor:
Another one desperately trying to turn every topic no matter how harmless into an anti government rant.
Give up.
As the recent election shows you are more likely to harm the opposition with your pettyness than the government.
@P. J.: Pettiness???You’re obviously living in a bubble.I see by You’re comment you’ve assumed I’m anti government,Would I be far right???
Another woke clown
@martin lawlor: I think you need a day off from the moaning
@martin lawlor: There is no government politician can match SF for populism.
@martin lawlor: probably took him about 60 seconds to say all that. I suppose you can burn down a good few asylum seeker houses in 60 seconds.
@Mick Duvanny: Far from moaning just sick of listening to SH 1 T
@M To The B: Ah here,I give up.
Another one who’s making assumptions of anyone who criticises the Leader of the country as far right,racist, lay about etc.
@martin lawlor: Get a life. It’s nice to see a bit of humour. Nothing like Leo the Leak
@Patrick MC Dermott: Gob SH 1T
@martin lawlor: What have you ever done except leave snarky and depressing messages online. Take your useless hate elsewhere.
@martin lawlor: your* for the second you’re.
@martin lawlor: stop listening to yourself so
@martin lawlor: God you’re boring the $h.1.te outta me!
@Mick Duvanny: Don’t waste your breath or your typing fingers. Once a Moaner, always a Moaner. Sadly, there’s more than one in every paridh
She is a 4 at best, a stag night girl. Pump and dump
Stop pretending to have a personality, Simon.
This is a real case of The Harris spin doctors seeing how they can make him appeal and look like he has something in common with the electorate . However there is a PR company and spin doctors who are being paid handsomely with our tax to publicise this spin.
Unfortunately people fall for this .
The opposition will be caugh napping if the don’t do likewise
@BL Music: no shortage of them in Spin Fein
@BL Music: The electorate? I’d say most Swifties are too young to vote
@BL Music: christ, the electorate has had to listen to Mary Lou for the past 7 or 8 years spouting populist garbage. Have you been asleep?
@BL Music: of course it is, did you come down in the last shower? That’s what half of being a politician is, trying to get into every darn photo op or publicity stunt going to keep the face in the sights of the voters. The opposition and independents do this too. Those that don’t get sort of forgotten about…. They wouldn’t do spin if it didn’t yield results.
“my pebble”…ok you’re the Taoiseach atm but you don’t actually ‘own’ the country…
More importantly, those with serious convictions should not only be banned from the Defence Forces but from the Dail too.
I once met a shy pebble,she wished she was a little boulder.
What an absolute a hole of a taoiseach, trying to be hip and cool.
Unbelievable bollix
@den: YAWN
@Anthony Burke: you defo need some sleep there young man, you probably stayed up too late last night being offended by everything
@orb7eckn: It doesn’t seem like he’s offended at all.
She took a pebble and you gave away the country.
Wonder what her carbon footprint is? Who needs a private jet ffs.
Emissions from private jets in terms of CO2 and NOx are multiple times that of commercial aircraft, not that a moneymaking machine like Taylor Swift would care one whit. As for her musical ( if that’s not a misnomer!) output, it is woefully bland, banal, shallow, and formulaic. It sounds AI- generated. But I suppose if it keeps the gullible masses happy, so be it. Panem et circenses ( bread and circuses), as the Romans only knew too well, appeases the plebeians!!!
I doubt she reads to journal.
Think this message would have been better sent through twitter if she doesnt have him blocked.
@Padraic O’ Sullivan: I don’t think this is a Journal exclusive
U2s hometown is Amsterdam i thought?
@bruce banner: Anywhere they can dodge the Revenue Commissioners will do.
Well said him! (before the knockers arrive).
@Hotirish: You can’t call her that.
@Hotirish: is that what our Irish minority group is called in D4? ;
@Jack Hayes: Because Dolly Parton already took that name!
Something a little different from the other comments ,not a fan myself ,but if you are going have a fantastic time .Now..see, not a mention of any TDs etc…can be done .
It’d be gas if someone gave Enoch Burke a spare ticket for the show now that he’s out.
@Benny Colreavy: out in out or out in gay out??
Does his wife know that he wants to pick his bone with TayTay?
Home town !!! When it suits them.
Jesus I had a ticket in the glove box and I forgot all about it……
Who cares. Talentless
can nobody in this country have a little bit light harted fun without being criticized anymore, I’m no fan of this government but give him a break. all he was doing was having a joke about the biggest pop star in the world who by the way is creating a lot custom for the small business around dublin, i know the hotels are robbing people this weekend but the likes of the small shops and pubs will do well so grow up ya clowns who criticize everyone
€1400 a second she’ll make…handy bobs if you can get them
Spit on me Taylor…
@James Carolan: Where’s your Taylor? Doesn’t quite have the same ring as “spit on me Dickie”
Bring back the days of Sean Lemass! A proper leader
@Johnno Reilly: Yeah, and Elvis too.
Dear Swifties,
As a Non-Touring Independent Artist, it’s difficult to grow a fan base.
If you would like to help, please use
the link below and click the FOLLOW BUTTON and then click the follow button on my Spotify page.
Very much appreciated,
Thank you
Patrick
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/patrickwestman/all-my-colours-fade-to-blue
@Patrick Presley: any relation to a man called Elvis ?
@Jb Walshe: Some people have Suspicious Minds
I couldn’t give a fiddler’s fart about Swift, or Harris.
But I do give a toss about the Environment.
And, in fairness, the Gards and the loss of bodies to rural Ireland (if a fraction of rural and/or non-Dublin-based Gards have been peeled-off of Rural Ireland to serve in Dublin this weekend).
Just like the anti-immigration “protests” criminal mis-direct, the condensing of Gards into 1 area/withdrawal of Gards from another area, will be yet another generous gift to the various street-level operations for OCGs.
As for the “Private Plane” emissions complaint that both fans, and non-fans alike, seem to have against Swift’s use of a Private Plane vs Chartered – where is the evidence? I would just love to see proof that 2 Boeing aircrafts, of the exact same model, somehow have drastically different carbon emissions.
How so?
Please, do explain people.
Because I suspect the intention is to moan about the *individual human being’s* carbon footprint.
Rather than actually doing extensive research and maths on comparative luggage requirements, any potential incorporation of performance-related equipment into her aircraft’s cargo hold, and any possibility or potential that some headcount of staff might actually be boarded on her “private” plane.
That probably, her cargo hold carries the entire logistical and engineering makeup of her performance.
Because, let’s face it, no performer, doing such a number of gigs, at such frequency, across so many locations, could be reasonably expected to trust a *series of* Chartered Flights with public aircrafts and airlines who routinely lose and/or have delayed delivery of everything from tiny generic luggage to entire lumps of furniture and giant pieces of art/sculpture.
Why, on earth, would anyone expect any such performer to not simplify and streamline their logistics by configuring their entire show into their *own* aircraft!?
That said.
They could have logistically planned to book-out a Ferry to move the show from Britain to Ireland.
Then Ferry back to Britain, transfer across to mainland Europe and switch to a series of *train carriages* (or a whole train) for the European leg of the tour.
Then do similar on each Continent.
Once the Private Aircraft lands on each continent – switch to a Private Train (with the goal being: Trains are already partly powered by Renewables….and will, hopefully, soon be fully powered by Renewable Energy).
@Pink Freud: Who Cares Jeronimo.
@Pink Freud: Take your meds. Did you miss a dose today?
She is a young beautiful talented woman. Like her or not, she brings on a show !
@Nathalie Bellamy: she’s 34 which ain’t that young, she’s very average looking. How ever she’s very talented……at making money.ill give you that.
What a load of tripe sitting here watching the amazing Dua Lipa in Glastonbury now that’s talent and hard work .
@Karen Marten: watched it myself and to be honest i didn’t think she was that good, to much miming and not enough live singing
@Nikki Swift: you think plastic swift mimes much ???
@Karen Marten: I’d say she does but thats not my point, if i was paying alot of money to go to a gig I’d like the artist to sing live
@Nikki Swift: how many artists do you know that actually sing. EVERY SONG LIVE for a 2hr gig . Hmm I was watching Glastonbury last night I saw her sing and the lines she didn’t sing her backing vocals did . She has more talent than that fake cupcake
Whats it the equivalent off ?
Cause I just can’t get my head round all the hype.
And don’t say Beatle Mania !
The people getting triggered by Simon Harris are delicate snowflakes with very little control over their emotions.
Jumpin Jesopath, nipple blockers.
She should burn anything to do with that BoBo fella who has gone to ground over his Gaza carry on..
Meanwhile SHEEP the government just undemocraticly pushed through the migration pact. WAKE THE F@CK UP
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