Results 1,881-1,900 of 2,990 for speaker:Ossian Smyth

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: That is a good question: is procurement slow and when we measure its speed, how do we compare with other countries? It is essential that we have rapid procurement but that we also manage to get good value for money, that we obtain goods that are high quality and that we do so in a transparent way. We have to comply with European procurement law, first. Public procurement is all about...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I have been told that someone might apply for a tender and they must type all their information in a second time, where it might have been there from another bid. So there is a suggestion that it should be stored. That is an IT system shortcoming. We are in the process of obtaining a new e-tenders system. The system for tendering, eTenders, is quite old at this stage. We have been...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I really think so. I have a particular IT focus myself. There was a lot of consultation with the people who take part in tenders to ask how they would like it to be done better. Any suggestions for improvements were incorporated in the terms recommended for the new tendering system. I think it will be something that is much faster and easier to use when applying for a contract. I take...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: For a start, the question is, does one have to use the frameworks for legal services or do Departments have to use the centrally agreed arrangements. It is Government policy - it is a decision of Government - that all divisions of Government need to use the available arrangements where they apply. There are frameworks for legal services. There are some that are specialist and niche...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: It is sensible always to use arbitration options where they are available. One cannot opt out of the legal process. If somebody wants to take one to court, he or she can. It is not always clear who is to blame in those cases when there are two parties and one cannot dismiss somebody, for example, as a candidate for a bid, because we have spent so much money on legal services or because we...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: When one has a procurement that ends up in protracted litigation, that certainly is a bad outcome. It is an expensive outcome for all sides and it is not something that anybody wants. When that happens, it is important to examine, carry out an inquiry and find out what is the cause of that. I guess that is why the report on the children's hospital was commissioned to see how things could...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: The Comptroller and Auditor General has a role in assessing to what extent there have been non-competitive procedures used for procurement across all Departments. The Comptroller and Auditor General goes in and compiles a report to see what proportion of contracts are non-compliant or non-competitive. Sometimes it is possible to have a non-competitive contract which is compliant. There are...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure and Reform (Revised)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Revised)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Revised)
Vote 15 - Secret Service (Revised)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Revised)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Revised)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Revised)
Vote 39 - Office of Government Procurement (Revised)
Vote 43 - Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I have more than words of comfort. We have done a lot of work with the SME representative bodies to make sure that they are included in these contracts, that they are fairly treated and that they are not pushed out by larger, better-resourced organisations that might then deliver a worse service to Government. We are therefore keen that we get small firms that successfully tender for...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (1 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I propose to take Questions Nos. 210 to 214, inclusive, together. The National Broadband Plan (NBP) is a Government policy initiative that is being achieved through a combination of accelerated commercial investment by telecoms operators, and a State intervention. Information regarding the NBP is available on the Department’s website at www.broadband.gov.ie.  As a State...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (1 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) State led Intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) under a contract to roll out a high speed and future proofed broadband network within the Intervention Area which covers 1.1 million people living and working in the over 554,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms along with some 679 schools.  NBI has...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Environmental Policy (1 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: The guidance referred to was commissioned by my Department and the National Parks and Wildlife Service and relates to the regulatory framework (primarily that aspect which relates to the planning system) which applies to peat extraction at the time of publication. The guidance was published on 17 January 2022 and is available here...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Environmental Policy (1 Feb 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I take it that the question refers to actions included in the Working Paper to Address Challenges Related to Peat Supply in the Horticulture Sector, recently published by the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine. That Working Paper was prepared by officials from the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and my...

National Broadband Plan: Statements (27 Jan 2022)

Ossian Smyth: If the Deputy gives me examples of those, I will trace them down and find an answer for him.

National Broadband Plan: Statements (27 Jan 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I do not doubt the Deputy for a second. As with any roll-out, there are developments and changes and people's dates move. At the start, I asked that people be told honestly what year we were planning to connect them, even if it disappoints them to find out that they will be in the sixth or seventh year. It means that as things change and the roll-out progresses, if it is found that...

National Broadband Plan: Statements (27 Jan 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I believe that the former Minister's target of reaching 90% of homes by 2024 related to all homes in Ireland and not just the national broadband intervention area. Maybe that is providing confusion. Some 22% of homes are in the intervention area. The intention was to reach, or that we would have done, 60% of them by the end of 2024. In other words, 60% of the intervention area homes would...

National Broadband Plan: Statements (27 Jan 2022)

Ossian Smyth: Today, construction of rural broadband is going on in 26 counties in Ireland. In other words, no county is being left until the end of the pile. In 26 different counties broadband is being installed simultaneously. A decision was made to make sure that no county was left behind and only done when other counties were done. Construction is going on in-----

National Broadband Plan: Statements (27 Jan 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I have the figures. Does the Deputy want me to tell her how many are under construction in each of those counties? In Donegal, 5,681 premises are under construction. In Leitrim, 954 are under construction. Construction is going on in every-----

National Broadband Plan: Statements (27 Jan 2022)

Ossian Smyth: We will make sure that we provide the Deputy with as much information as possible in as transparent a way as possible. We might be getting lost in the details. I am happy to talk to the Deputy directly about this.

National Broadband Plan: Statements (27 Jan 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I am not saying the Deputy is wrong. I am saying there is construction-----