Ministers burn €32K in fuel in 13 months
GARDAÍ have forked out almost € 32,000 in fuel costs to keep the cars of the Taoiseach, Tánaiste, Minister for Justice, and Minister for Foreign Affairs on the road over the past thirteen months.
Over 26,000 litres of fuel — almost threequarters of it heavily-polluting diesel — has been poured into the state cars since the end of June 2020.
That comprised of 642 separate fills to keep the fleet, which at one stage compr i sed of six different cars, on the roads.
Distance
Overall, the government state cars travelled 262,393 kilometres, enough to take them around two- thirds of the way to the Moon.
Details released by gardaí reveal the Taoiseach was the most eco- conscious of his Cabinet colleagues with very likely the smallest carbon footprint.
Over the past thirteen months, he has used two cars — one a petrol/ hybrid and another a diesel — in racking up more than 67,000 kilometres.
Overall, the Taoiseach’s fuel bill came to just under €10,000.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has only used a diesel car for his state duties. The car has racked up almost 46,000 kilometres at a cost of €6,266.
The Minister for Justice Helen McEntee had two diesel cars and the cost of around 6,125 litres of diesel came to €7,377.
Minister Coveney had a single car, but gardaí declined to say how much it cost under FOI.