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THE VISIT OF US President Donald Trump to Ireland will cost several million euro, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.
The total expense of the drop-in tour is yet to be costed by the government, as it is still unclear how long Trump will be staying in the country and what his plans while here are.
Trump is likely to come to Ireland on 12 or 13 November, according to Tánaiste Simon Coveney, who said the US president is likely to stop off in Ireland on the way back from the Armistice Day commemorations in Paris.
It is understood the US president will visit Dublin and Clare on his trip.
Since the announcement of the visit last week, questions have been asked about how much it will cost.
Security costs for Pope Francis’s visit are expected to reach about €32 million, while visits of President Obama and Queen Elizabeth were almost double the original estimate, costing €36 million.
However, they were more formal events.
The Taoiseach was asked at the party’s annual think-in this week how much the trip will cost.
“We don’t really know how long he is going to stay in the country,” said the Taoiseach, saying it may only be one night or two.
“But there will undoubtedly be security costs… it will certainly be several million,” said Varadkar who added that he expects it to cost less than the Pope’s visit as the stay is expected to be shorter.
The Taoiseach would not hazard a guess at the cost, stating that he did not want to make up a figure on the spot.
The announcement of Trump’s visit took the government a “little by surprise”, the Tánaiste said this week. Sine the news broke, a number of groups and political parties have called for protests to be held.
Coveney said yesterday that it is a “crazy” idea to stop the US president from visiting, but said difficult issues will be raised with Trump.
Members of his own Cabinet are expected to protest against the visit, with both junior ministers Finian McGrath and John Halligan stating they are against the planned trip.
Varadkar told reporters yesterday that protests “rarely change things in my experience”. He said there are a lot of governments that are unelected around the world that Ireland engages with, including China, and other administrations that the Irish government disagrees with profoundly.
“Donald Trump, whether we like it or not, is the democratically elected president,” said the Taoiseach, adding that the Irish government will engage with the president and his administration the “same way as any other country”.
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The Taoiseach seems happy to spend money on absolutely anything but where it’s needed.
@P Quinn: ignoring the fact that the US fund these security costs.
@Shawn O’Ceallaghan: are you saying the trip won’t cost us anything? Just checking, as Trump is known for not paying up
@P Quinn: Stick Trump on a trolley in a hallway instead?
Look,
Leo, this is your chance to show the world that Ireland has grown up.
Make no fuss, no bells and whistles and just do what a strong, together nation needs to do.
The Irish people can welcome him or protest but I would like the Government that represents me to do nothing only the essentials when this guy visits.
He has his own gaf, so let him use it.
The Gardai, the Defence forces are getting paid anyway so just reallocate the resources we have and so keeping the costs to a minimum.
If the money can be found to pander to this tool, then you should use it where it is really needed.
Come on Leo….. make a real difference.
@Martin Stapleton: Yeah right. Just the same we did when the boss of world biggest pedophile mafia visited recently. We really showed him what a modern forward thinking nation we are.
Can’t his secret service look after him
Problem solved.
@Alan Cummins: Yea there first reaction is usually shoot first ask no questions later.
@Alan Cummins: He’s just too toxic…
If it costs €10M it is still a small fraction of the taxes paid by US companies in Ireland every year. We should welcome him and express our views but remember that he will face an election in two years and maybe gone but the United States will still be our friend. Why sour relations with a democracy because of prejudice and disapproval of his policies. Wake up and smell the coffee.
He wants to pull those companies out of Ireland and back to the US and the CEO’s of most of them can’t stand him.. neither can most Americans. Canceling the invite would be more in our interests..
I personally have no problem with the US president coming here if it will benefit Ireland in some way with trade agreements, but are we the tax payers not allowed to have a say on where the money is being spent, our government didn’t listen to the economists when they advised on the last crash and how there are warning in place again. Time to wake up.
Welcome to ireland trump, your doong a great job, and providing local jobs in doonbeg to the people of west clare, a statue should be built for you with all the money your puumping into the area.
Hail hail.
@Paul: don’t forget we the tax payer paid £30m towards his hotel and golf course……
aha, yes NAMA sold him that hotel for a £30m discount of which we still owe Germany for. Thank you NAMA for burdening us with this debt we didn’t ask for.
@Gareth Cooney: lol! Your right but hardly Trumps fault that, when the shit was against the fan ten years ago people did nothing and took the screwing over, only ourselves to blame.
People should use their energy protesting against worthwhile issues not a dopey American President coming to town for a night or two.
On a different note , I wonder how much the Americans spend on Leo’s security when he pops over for Paddy’s Day!?
@Hardly Normal: And when they do like they’re doing in Waterford at the moment they get pulled apart on social media for being done scroungers etc despite no evidence whatsoever.
OMG , It’s NOT like my beloved government to squander money , they normally keep a very close eye on hard working tax payers money……just saying
This issue raised its head when the Pope visited also. Whatever we might think of someone’s policies- this simple rule applies:
If we invite them- we pay.
If they invite us- they pay.
You don’t invite someone over for dinner and tell them to bring the food, do you?
International relations and protocol are the same.
@OpenMinded: that should be the norm, but we invite the pope and pay 32million taxpayers money for the privilege, to the richest ‘nation’ in the world, lucky us.
@Sean O’Reilly: and our ‘government’ shuts down 159 community services nationwide in 31 counties…
Get Noonan to pay for it,I’m sure after the last time and the red carpet he can even afford the dancing girls.
Rubbish, they will do their own security, he has his own hotel, they have effective control of Shannon for their troop movements, & instead of protesting, let’s just ignore the charade.
A Captain Boycott policy would be ideal.
@William Kelly: or we could a #plaidshirtguy silent but effective protest!
Can’t the secret service look after him.
Problem solved.
Cheap lazy journalism.
Seems to me this disgusting clown has actually invited himself to Ireland, not because he gives a damn about a country that alledgly stock piles millions in profits away from the IRS (According to himself anyway) but this is more about deflection from his troubles at home. “I know, I’ll go to Ireland, they love American Presidents, I’ll get lots of good press coverage etc etc”, the man has a warped sense of reality and I cannot phathom why every single Irish politician can’t just be away, out of the country, sick, anything to give this horrible man the welcome he deserves.
@Joseph Dempsey: Welcome President Trump. Your economy is booming resulting from your tax changes, more money in the pockets of working class Americans , Tax cut for small businesses has enabled them to grow and start recruiting again after years of struggling under Obama who spent his time drone bombing innocent people. GDP is at 4% where it never rose above2% with Obama.Highest numbers of Women and Blacks working ever. AITS all about the economy stupid and you are found a good job, who cares what the permanently outraged snowflakes outrage over nothing has to say. People care about real things.
@Ger Murphy: Live there do you?
What about spending a few millions on housing?
Well worth it as the American put roughly 320bn into this country with the company’s here every year
How many homeless people could have a roof over their heads for the amount of money to be spent on that clown visiting here.
@Jonathan Broderick: I was waiting for the first homeless obsessed comment to arrive.
@Jonathan Broderick: Very few compared to what it cost us to welcome boss of the biggest pedophile ring in the world. That would solve the housing crisis for years to come.
Where will the money go to? Will it leave the country?
@Pajo Mata: the gardai will see the majority of this money in their overtime costs because it certainly won’t be the defence forces.
Got to laugh, or cry – Varadkar told reporters yesterday that “Protests rarely change things in my experience”
Ah well, so much for democratic process, let’s see the protest vote at the election booths Leo.
@wattsed: “Protests rarely change things in my experience”. Really ? Have you forgotten Irish Water already ? Protest killed that doozy. And don’t forget the ultimate protest occurs at the ballot box……
Most expensive tax contribution to what is a free world advertisement for Trump Doonbeg – otherwise nothing in it for president trump to visit here
Our incompetent gov is costing the country billions.
Politicians bankrupting the country, then manipulating the property market to get themselves out of trouble and causing a housing crisis in the process.
With any luck he’ll do a Yeltsin and stay on the plane.
Considering the billions upon billions of foreign direct investment that American companies, and tourists, contribute to Ireland, any money spent to facilitate U.S. President Trump’s visit to Ireland is more than worth it.
Imagine what the publicity stateside will be for Ireland inc. seven million, lol!
@Shane Zerbe: if our government spend sometime on the housing crisis
@trebloc01: is it true that most of our government ministers are landlords?
Trump is not wanted , we already wasted millions having the pope .
Spend the money on a new hospital? More ambulances? Homeless crisis ? The list goes on
What BS, country paying millions so he can visit his Clare business interests safely. Boggling!
This Is very simple, if you have several million euro to indulge this moron for a day rather than use that money on homelessness or health care then you need to resign immediately. Tell him to get lost.
He’s only popping in to check on his golf course get him to pay
With all the money Trump is reported to have ,let him pay the bill himself,,this is like a fairy tale,with the budget due and they are warning of cutbacks,how in gods name is it going to cost millions,with the bill for the popes visit just gone now we have this other million euro holiday for Trump,,
The people of Ireland should say enough is enough no more waste if public money
Atleast my taxes will be spent on something worthwhile for once . Go Trump . Cant wait to see them all licking up to him after slagging him off for 2 years , liberal losers.
@John Porridge: i’m sure that it will be the best 10c of tax that you have ever paid \O/ ,yah right-wing loser :-)
@Francis Mc Carthy: hi Francis , thanks for your wonderful comment . I take it you are looking forward to seeing the Donald . Kisses and hugs sweetie …
Disgusting people lieing on trolleys in hospitals people sleeping on the streets and he’s doing what he likes with tax payers money this government is obnoxious
Here we go again! Last month the Popes visit …nasty comments posted, Trumps visit has no fundraisers unlike the Papal Visit. It will cost us more. Let the lads who comment on this Journal App have a field day. Its set up to give the illusion of informative journalism…welcome one and all.
lets face it -this entire visit is about two massively big headed egotists — leo and trump ! leo loves the publicity ,the photo shoots ,meeting the ‘celebrities ‘ – trump just loves the publicity – neither of them give a hoot about their countries or the citizens of their countries , both are far more interested in their own little worlds — when this pair of self obsessed clowns actually meet up the headlines should read “THE EGO’S HAVE LANDED “!
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