Will the last minister out turn off the lights?

AUSTRALIA, Argentina and Malaysia — just some of the exotic destinations to which government ministers will travel this year to represent Ireland on St Patrick’s Day.

Every March, a phalanx of senior and junior ministers travel to far-flung locations at a cost of hundreds of thousands of euro to the taxpayer.

But the Government insists St Patrick’s Day is a rare opportunity to market Ireland abroad and says the benefits of such trips far outweigh the costs.