Mr. Seamus McCarthy:

It might be useful if I read the disclosure in the statement of internal control from the university in relation to this matter, as signed off on by the president on behalf of the governing body. It states:

UCD has put in place procurement policies and procedures and all non-pay expenditure is required to be procured in accordance with these policies and procedures. Instances of non-compliance identified by management or in Internal Audit reports are brought to the attention of the Head of the relevant School/Unit or budget-holder. In framing its procurement policies and procedures, UCD has applied a threshold of €60,000 above which all expenditure must be subject to tendering. UCD does not operate the €25,000 threshold set out in national public procurement guidelines as adherence to this level would be administratively challenging due to the limited procurement staffing resources available. The current threshold of €60,000 allows UCD to focus on getting best value from higher-value purchases. Expenditure under €60,000 requires competitive quotations to be obtained. In addition, the €25,000 threshold is applied to some research expenditure where this is required by the terms and conditions attaching to the particular research grant. The UCD Procurement Office runs tenders on behalf of the university and provides support and training to staff across the university.

That is the position.