Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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513. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has re-negotiated external IT consultancy contracts and costs since March 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54465/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department awards a contract for ICT Security consultancy services on a two year basis. The service consists of quarterly independent assessments of my Department’s ICT security measures and a biannual independent security review of my Department's ICT infrastructure as required for EU accreditation purposes. In addition, services for independent web application testing are provided where required.

Following an open EU public tendering procedure held earlier this year, a contract for this work was awarded in June 2013. On this occasion it was awarded to a different company than on the previous occasion that this work was tendered. It is envisaged that my Department will run an open EU tender competition for this ICT consultancy work again in 2015, on the expiry of the existing arrangement.

My Department is also heavily reliant on high quality Geographical Information Systems (GIS) to assist with single payment and rural environmental protection schemes and to assist in carrying out our animal health obligations. Following an open public tendering procedure held in 2012, my Department awarded a contract to Compass Informatics to carry out a comprehensive review of the operation of the Department’s GIS systems and to produce a report on how to ensure that these systems continue to serve my Department well into the future. The final report was completed in 2013 and a number of the recommendations are currently being implemented. My Department also has contracts in place for ICT contract programming resources.