Lunch with Enda? It’s going to cost you
Those who prefer a more active encounter, meanwhile, can play golf with Mr Kenny in London next week for the sum of €1,000 per team of four, or €250 per person.
And, for those who don’t wish to travel, they’ll have another opportunity to golf with the opposition leader in July, in the splendid Co Kildare setting of the K-Club, home to this year’s Ryder Cup tournament.
But they’ll pay more for the privilege, at a cost of €2,000 per team of four, or €500 per person.
The two golf tournaments alone are set to raise over €125,000 for the party. Fundraising events are coming thick and fast as Fine Gael attempts to finance its spending plans for the general election.
It is not just party headquarters which is organising events, however. Individual candidates and constituency branches are also seeking to build up war chests for the election.
Tomorrow’s lunch with Mr Kenny is a good example of the latter. The event, taking place at the Finnstown Country House Hotel in Lucan, is actually a fundraiser for Frances Fitzgerald, the former TD who lost her seat in 2002 and is now attempting a political comeback in the Dublin Mid West constituency.
Tickets for the two-hour event, which begins at 12.30pm and will mark the formal launch of her campaign, are €120 per person. Mr Kenny will be the guest speaker. Ms Fitzgerald said she expects about 200 people to attend, meaning the event could raise €24,000 before expenses are paid out.
Another example was last month’s corporate fundraiser for the Kildare South branch of the party, which was held at Punchestown Racecourse on Gold Cup Day.
Almost 600 people attended, according to a branch spokesperson, at a price of €100 per ticket, raising in the region of €60,000 before expenses were defrayed. Again, Mr Kenny was guest of honour on the day.
His spokesman said he would attend “a smattering” of such events for individual candidates and constituencies in the coming months.
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