Calendars and Christmas cards among 213,020 items printed for Galway politicians at taxpayers' expense
TDs and senators from Galway also used the Oireachtas print facility to produce thousands of sympathy cards, newsletters, and copies of the 1916 Proclamation
Thousands of Christmas cards and calendars were among more than 200,000 copies of customised print items produced for Galway TDs and senators at the taxpayer’s expense since the beginning of last year.
They also used the Oireachtas print facility to produce hundreds of sympathy and congratulations cards, along with 75,000 newsletters and 500 A4 copies of the 1916 Proclamation.
The most prolific printer by volume during the period was Fine Gael Senator Sean Kyne, who became a TD last May after winning the Galway West bye-election. He used the facility to print a total of 42,000 copies of a six-page ‘Know Where You Stand’ leaflet.
The only Galway Oireachtas member to use the print facility for the production of customised calendars was Fianna Fáil TD for Galway East, Albert Dolan, who requested 400 of the items last year.
He also printed 1,000 Christmas cards and 1,000 generic greetings cards, along with 200 copies of a visitors book, which provides information about Leinster House for guests.
A total of six others used the print facility to produce customised Christmas cards: Fianna Fáil’s John Connolly (1,000 copies), Ollie Crowe (300), and Shane Curley (300), as well as Fine Gael’s Peter Roche (300), independent Senator Rónán Mullen (500), and Minister of State Seán Canney (350).
Former Fianna Fáil minister Anne Rabbitte received 500 greetings cards from the facility, while Ollie Crowe and Peter Roche received 300 and 250, respectively. In total, 213,020 copies of printed items were produced for Galway TDs and senators.
Rónán Mullen was the only Oireachtas member from Galway to print congratulations cards last year, while sympathy cards were produced for Fianna Fáil TD for Galway East, Martin Daly (300 copies), and Ollie Crowe (200).
A total of 75,310 copies of newsletters were printed for TDs and senators from Galway constituencies during the period. Almost half of these (36,760) were produced for Fine Gael TD and Minister for Education Hildegarde Naughton.
Shane Curley received 9,350 copies of newsletters, while Sinn Féin TD Louis O’Hara received 7,000, and Senator Gerard Craughwell used the facility to print 6,200 copies over nine separate orders.
Only one representative in the three Dáil constituencies comprising parts of County Galway did not use the Oireachtas print facility at all: Independent Ireland TD Michael Fitzmaurice.
Oireachtas members are entitled to use the centralised print facility in connection with their parliamentary duties. The production of materials is also occasionally outsourced to external contractors. Details of print orders were contained in records released by the Houses of the Oireachtas under the Freedom of Information Act.