Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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236. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when and where E-tenders for school transport for 2013 were advertised; if he will indicate the deadline for pre-qualification; if this deadline was earlier than previous years; the date of the deadline for submission of tenders in 2012; the number of contractors that were informed by e-mail; the number of other contractors who are not current contractors that were made aware of the closing date; his views on whether all contractors were given sufficient notice regarding the closing date for submission of tenders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26664/13]

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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Bus Éireann, which operates the School Transport Scheme on behalf of my Department, has advised that the Notice for the Provision of School Transport Services - Third Cycle, was published by Bus Éireann on the e-tenders website on the 11th of March 2013. The related deadline date for receipt of completed Pre-Qualification Questionnaires (PQQ) for the first call for competition for work starting in August 2013 was before 12 noon on Monday, 8th April 2013.

In 2012, the Notice for the Provision of School Transport Services - Second Cycle was published on the e-tenders website on the 3rd of April 2012. The deadline date for receipt of PQQ submissions for the first call for competition for work starting in August 2012 was the 3rd of May 2012. The deadline date for receipt of tenders was before 12 noon on Wednesday, 4th July 2012.

Contractors who are currently providing the services being put out to public tender in the Third Cycle were given the courtesy by their local school transport office of being informed that the work was being put out to public tender through a variety of methods, including email, by phone, or by post. Other private operators and Contractors interested in this work were forwarded the PQQ by email or post. Some 450 private operators were contacted in this process, and this number does not include the interested parties who downloaded the documents directly from the e-tenders website.

The period of time that was afforded to private operators and Contractors alike satisfied procurement obligations and was considered sufficient to allow interested parties both to become aware that this work was being put out to public tender and to submit the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire before the deadline date.