The issue here is that in the spirit of the Bilderberg conference, which is a secretive conference, the Minister has not given me a full breakdown of exactly what he did and what he was discussing. It is only through a freedom of information request we have an insight into what he got up to. We also need to see it in the context of the time. When fuel protestors were out on the streets demanding the Minister's Government intervene just so they could make ends meet he was in Washington DC spending $760 a night of taxpayers' money on a luxury five-star hotel. While working families up and down the State were unable to afford to fill their tanks with fuel he was spending money on business class flights to the tune of thousands of euro and in total the trip cost the taxpayer €6,800. During a cost-of-living crisis why on Earth should taxpayers fund that type of trip while still not being aware of exactly what was being discussed?

The Deputy and her party fully understand, in the context of the party's participation in the Executive in the North, the importance of international engagement, foreign direct investment and engagement with the business community. As I said, the role in the context of the attendance at Bilderberg and meeting the US Chamber of Commerce is always to promote Ireland, to engage with many people who invest here and also political leaders in Europe and elsewhere. It is important, as an open, trading economy that we do that. I fully participated in the Cabinet meeting held on Sunday which obviously had advanced the discussions relating to our response and the important interventions we made. The Deputy's approach here, in undermining international engagement, is not fair.

I did not ask the Minister about his discussions with the US Chamber of Commerce. I asked him specifically about the Bilderberg conference. The focus on militarisation was absolutely clear from the agenda, which included discussions on the transatlantic defence industrial relationship, the Middle East and the future of warfare. As he is the Minister for public expenditure I find it concerning he would foster a close relationship with bosses of military companies, which is not in our national interest. I am concerned about the threat to our neutrality from this Government. The Minister will know there are no minutes or media coverage recording what was discussed in these sessions, so I would like to know what was discussed. The public paid nearly €7,000 for this trip and we have a right to know exactly what sessions the Minister attended, who he met and what he discussed.

All the attendees at the conference are published on the Bilderberg website, as is the specific agenda across many topics. As I have said it was AI, Arctic security, digital finance, energy diversification, Europe, global trade and the Middle East. It is attended by public representatives - members of government - from parts of Europe and the US, industry leaders and also by members of the media. The wider organisation's meeting agenda, respective press releases and what is discussed are set out. It has been attended by many members of Irish Governments in the past. As I said, it is important, as an open, trading economy that we engage with business leaders and members of government from across the world. It provides an important forum to do that.