Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 27 January 2022

Public Accounts Committee

Business of Committee

9:30 am

Photo of Brian StanleyBrian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

You would not have a great lifestyle out of that.

No. 1011B is correspondence from Mr. Mark Griffin, Secretary General, Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, dated 17 January 2022. It provides detailed information requested by the committee in respect of the national broadband plan.

That will be relevant to our meeting with National Broadband Ireland, NBI, and the Department on 10 February. We are meeting with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, next week. Information is also provided relating to grants under the retrofitting scheme. It is proposed to note and publish the correspondence. Is that agreed? Agreed. There are a number of issues in it that I prefer to keep until next week, having had some time to look at it yesterday.

No. 1014B is from Mr. Fergal Lynch, Secretary General, Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, dated 18 January 2022. This arises from information requested by the committee regarding compliance with procurement guidelines. Last week, we considered an interim response from the Secretary General, No. R1004, and the substantive response is before us today. In its 2020 accounts, the Department disclosed non-compliant procurement totalling over €91 million, and 151 of the 153 contracts concerned related to the provision of international protection accommodation, which is part of direct provision. Responsibility for this area was transferred to the Department from the Department of Justice in 2020. In No. R0939, the Secretary General explained that he took the view that these accounts, which the Department of Justice considered to be competitively procured, should be included in the disclosure of an uncompliant procurement for 2020. Linked to efforts to address this non-compliance is the Department’s work in implementing the White Paper to end direct provision and to establish a new international protection support service. The Secretary General includes an overview of that process. It is proposed to note and publish this item, except for details of the individual contracts which are provided on a confidential basis, and also to forward it to the relevant sectoral committee for its information. Is that agreed? Agreed. Two Deputies had flagged that for discussion but they are not present.

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