John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)

I am taking this matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Education and Science. I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, as it provides me with an opportunity to outline to this House the way in which the ICT infrastructure grant for primary schools, which was issued last November, may be utilised. In November last year the Taoiseach launched the Smart Schools = Smart Economy report, which is the new action plan for integrating ICT in schools. The report, which was produced by the joint advisory group established by the Minister earlier last year, builds on the earlier strategy group report, Investing Effectively in ICT in Schools. As a first step in implementing the recommendations of the report, €22 million in ICT grants was issued to primary schools in November last. In order to ensure value for money and to make the procurement process easier, schools were instructed to use the national framework agreements for the supply of ICT equipment, where such agreements are in place. Four distinct agreements for the supply of specific categories of ICT equipment to schools have been set up by the Department of Finance. The categories in question are PCs, laptops, mono laser printers and colour laser printers. In addition, the National Centre for Technology in Education has set up a framework for the purchase of digital projectors. Frameworks can facilitate greater flexibility in the acquisition of goods and services and support more responsive pricing mechanisms that deliver better value for money. The major features of the frameworks are the lowest price guarantee, the simple and cost-effective procurement process for customers, the public service terms and conditions and the centralised contract management and monitoring of vendor performance. In all cases, the suppliers were selected following an open competitive tendering exercise in compliance with EU and national procurement rules. The process was open to all companies.

In the interests of achieving best value for money, schools were asked by letter to use the framework agreements for the purchase of ICT equipment under the relevant categories. Schools can run a mini competitive tendering process by sending a simple request for quotation, setting out their requirements, to a single central e-mail address. In addition to the core products, schools can also request quotations for associated products and services, such as docking stations, batteries, USB keys, hard disks and unpacking and installation of equipment. The frameworks deliver competitive prices and are covered by a three-year, on-site, next-business-day system of warranty and support. The operation of the frameworks is governed by the vendor participation agreements, through which schools are able to benefit from a range of favourable terms and conditions, as agreed in the aggregate for eligible non-commercial public sector bodies. Framework agreements are generally set up for a period of three years, with an option of an extension for a further year, at the sole discretion of the Department of Finance in conjunction with the ICT frameworks steering group. The current framework for PCs will end on 30 April 2010. This includes the one-year extension. The three-year framework for laptops will end on 7 December 2012 with an option for extension until 7 December 2013. In forms of procurement where framework agreements do not exist, schools are required to carry out normal competitive tendering processes under general public procurement rules.

A number of schools have indicated in feedback that in certain circumstances, it may be possible to achieve better value from non-framework vendors. Therefore, it has been decided that in such situations schools may include non-framework vendors when issuing a request for quotes. However, schools must ensure they comply with public procurement procedures at all times and carry out this process in an open and equitable manner. Quotes must be sought from framework and non-framework vendors simultaneously and for an identical specification. All bidders should understand the key criteria against which their bids will be assessed. All quotes received must be evaluated against these criteria to identify the preferred bidder. Schools must keep confidential records of this process. Information for schools on this option is available on the NCTE website. Information on the evaluation process is available on the Centre for Management and Organisation Development website. I thank the Deputy.

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