Tom Ridge, the man appointed by President G.W. Bush as the first US Secretary of Homeland Security, was in Ireland to address delegates attending the Global Intelligence Forum.

The conference, in Dungarvan, Co. Waterford, was organised by the Institute for Intelligence Studies at Mercyhurst College of Erie, Pennsylvania, which has gained a reputation in studies relating to the gathering and analysis of intelligence and is used by the FBI.

The decision of Mercyhurst to hold the conference in Ireland seems to have been influenced by local Fine Gael TD John Deasy who is an alumni of the college, which was founded by the Sisters of Mercy. Some 150 delegates from 15 countries attended the conference which was also addressed by Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern.