Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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Question 124: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the total photography costs for his Department since coming to office; the list of occasions for which photographers were booked over the past year; the breakdown of costs associated with each occasion that a photographer was used; if there is a policy around the booking of photographers within his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9664/12]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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The total spend by my Department on photography since March 2011 is €57,561.65. The table outlines the costs associated with each occasion.

*It was not possible in the time available to provide a detailed breakdown.

Where ever possible my Department utilises its own staff to take photographs in-house, thereby reducing costs. However, for major events when high-resolution photography is required for the media or for publication, my Department uses the services of a professional photographic agency. As the table indicates there were a significant number of such events in 2011.

In September 2011, the Department led a collaborative advertised tender process for the procurement of a competitive framework of photographic service providers which will be available for use by all Government Departments. The tender process is nearing completion and details of the new framework arrangements will shortly be posted on the National Procurement Service website: www.procurement.ie.