Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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My Department was established on 19 July 2017. The information sought by the Deputy in respect of legal costs incurred by the Department since then is provided in the table below.

In 2018, the Department was assigned a designated point of contact for the provision of legal advice through the Office of the Attorney General, and this service provides for the majority of our ongoing requirements in this regard.

Separately, the Charities Regulatory Authority, which is an independent agency funded under a specific programme area of the Department, has also incurred costs for legal services over the period. These are not included in the table provided which, as stated, relate only to costs incurred directly by the Department.

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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My Department currently occupies office space at Trinity Point, Dublin 2, and Government Buildings, Ballina, Co. Mayo. The offices occupied in Ballina are in the ownership of the Office of Public Works (OPW), while the lease arrangements in relation to Trinity Point are managed on the Department's behalf by the OPW. In both cases, no costs are directly incurred by my Department.

My Department also has responsibility for the Islands, with a small staffing complement based in Na Forbacha, Co Galway. This office space, located in the Connemara Gaeltacht is provided on an agency basis by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.

No other rental or purchase arrangements have been entered into for office space since my Department's establishment in 2017.

Set out in the following table are details of the expenditure on IT, Office Equipment and Furniture and Fittings since the establishment of my Department in 2017. All such procurement takes place in the context of Office of Government Procurement guidelines, and primarily through Office of Government Procurement frameworks.

The expenditure in respect of 2017 to 2022 are as set out in the Department's Appropriation Account while the amounts for 2023 and 2024 are provisional, and remain subject to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General.