Visits and trips funded by the Northern Ireland Assembly and other bodies

Information Standards Freedom of Information Response

Our Ref: FoI 02 -19

08 February 2019

Freedom of Information Act 2000

I can confirm that the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission holds information relevant to your request of 04 January 2019. In your request you asked for the following information:

“1. A list of visits/trips made by MLAs to locations outside Northern Ireland from January 2017 to date, broken down by date and length of trip.

2. The names of MLAs on each trip.

3. Reasons for each trip.

4. The cost of each trip, including expenses claimed. If the cost for all trips is not yet known, then please provide details of the costs that are known to date.”

Clarification of your request was sought on 09th January 2019 as follows:

1. “Are you asking for only those trips that have been funded by the Northern Ireland Assembly?

2. Do you require the cost of each trip, including expenses claimed, for Members only or do you require the cost to include other individuals who may have attended?”

Your response of 10th January 2019 provided the following clarification:

1. “Could I please have information on those trips funded by both the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission and also those trips funded by other bodies?

2. I would like the cost of each trip, including expenses for Members only.”

The information, attached in Appendix A, is only a list of visits/trips made by MLAs which are booked through the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission. This is not a definitive list of all travel undertaken by Members as third part bodies may have incurred costs directly.

Abbreviations within the appendices are as follows:

CLRAE - Council for Europe

BIPA - British Irish Parliamentary Association

NAW - National Assembly for Wales

Engagements that are undertaken by the Speaker are done so in an official capacity on behalf of the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission.

If you feel that the information we have provided does not meet your request fully, please contact this office as soon as possible. You have the right to request a formal review by the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission and if you wish to do so, please write to me at the above address.

If after such an internal review you are still unhappy with the response, you have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF who will undertake an independent review.

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above.

Yours sincerely

INFORMATION STANDARDS

Appendix A

Key

* - Total costs include the costs of overnight accommodation; rail and air fares; taxi costs; public transport costs and incidental travel costs such as car parking or mileage in excess of the distance from the MLA's constituency office to Parliament Buildings

1 - Mr Dickson stayed an extra night on these occasions, however, he paid for this at his own cost.

2- Mr Buckley - Third Party paid for this flight. There is no direct cost to the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission.

3 - Mr Givan could not attend so Mr Wells replaced him on this BIPA Committee trip. Mr Givan's flights had already been booked and therefore the costs were still incurred.

4 - 30/06/2018 - Mr Dickson travelled to Istanbul directly from another meeting. The Northern Ireland Assembly Commission incurred the cost of the return flight which was then reimbursed by the CLRAE.