Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 101: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills the amount of money owed to private firms by her Department [42267/10]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I refer the Deputy to the attached most recent quarterly return made by my Department in accordance with a Government Decision of May 2009, regarding prompt payment of invoices by Government Departments. These quarterly returns are also posted on the website of my Department. At any given point in time there will be a small number of invoices in respect of which clarification or further documentation is sought from the supplier by the Department before an invoice can be authorised for payment. These are regarded as disputed invoices. My Department seeks to ensure that prompt payment is made to all suppliers while at the same time satisfying the requirement, under the Public Financial Procedures, that invoices are correctly certified as being in order for payment. In the period mid-July 2010 to mid-October 2010 just under €500 was paid in Prompt Payment Interest Penalties to a total of 17 suppliers who were paid outside of the required 30 days payment period.