Cullen and officials spent weekend at top resort
Before arriving in Kuala Lumpur to attend an international biodiversity meeting, the Minister and officials spent three days on the lush tropical island of Langkawi.
Mr Cullen was accompanied by press adviser Dan Pender, communications consultant Monica Leech and his civil servant private secretary.
The group stayed at the renowned Andaman hotel where, according to the Department of the Environment, Mr Cullen met with representatives of the Malaysian Nature Society and visited an ecological reserve.
Situated between spectacular mountains and the Andaman Sea, the resort stands in the centre of a virgin tropical rainforest.
Neither the Department nor Mr Cullen's press officer were able to provide details yesterday about the cost of the weekend.
"We don't have the figures for that leg of the trip. They arrived on February 13th after 7 and left at 12 noon on the 16th," said a Department spokesman.
The spokesman said he would endeavour to find out the names of the Malaysian Nature Society representatives whom Mr Cullen met.
The Andaman which has been voted Malaysia's best five-star resort charges from €215 for its cheapest room, up to a top rate of €1,290 for a presidential suite.
The weekend in Langkawi took place just before Mr Cullen attended an international biological diversity meeting in Kuala Lumpur during Ireland's tenure as EU President.
Since Ireland held the EU presidency, as many as 25 Irish officials, including Mr Cullen's group, spent most of the month of February in Malaysia. The total cost of all hotel accommodation for the month amounted to €29,316. In addition, total travel costs came to €37,816.
However, the Department was not in a position to provide the specific cost of the three-day trip to Langkawi yesterday.
The details emerged following a parliamentary question tabled by Fine Gael Deputy Paul McGrath in the Dáil this week. The reply stated the ministerial group left Dublin on February 11 and stopped over in Singapore before travelling to Langkawi.
It added the group met representatives of the Malaysian Nature society and visited an ecological reserve at Kilim, Langkawi.
Yesterday, the Standards in Public Office Commission agreed to seek further legal advice on whether to launch a full-scale inquiry into the hiring of Mrs Leech.
The purpose of Mrs Leech's participation in eight ministerial foreign trips was queried by former Revenue head Dermot Quigley in his inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the awarding of contracts to the PR consultant.
Although Mr Quigley cleared Mr Cullen of any wrongdoing, he expressed concern over Mrs Leech's travel abroad.
"One aspect about which I had a particular concern was a potential overlap between the role of the press officer and Mrs Leech on such trips," Mr Quigley stated in the report.
However, Mr Cullen's spokesman said the Malaysia conference had been a cornerstone of the EU presidency.
Mr McGrath questioned the necessity for the weekend. "It sounds more like a tourist trip than official business. And if so they should pay for it themselves," he said.
