Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent)
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75. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the way his departmental contracts for taxi companies for the purposes of taxis for the use of departmental staff are decided and allocated; if there is a public tender process for taxi companies wishing to apply for these contracts; the process for allocating the contracts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4647/14]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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When my Department last ran a public procurement competition for the provision of taxi services it invited 5 Taxi companies to quote for the provision of a Taxi/Hackney Service to the Department. National Radio Cabs (NRC) was the only company that responded to the Invitation to Tender - (ITT) at that time and subsequently a 2½ year contract was put in place with NRC. The contract encompassed the 3 Dublin based Department buildings and the Dublin based Offices of my Department (e.g. the Companies Registration Office). That contract expired in September 2011. In the context of the development of a National Procurement Service, my Department did not issue a further tender for taxi services since late 2011 as we propose accessing the centrally procured taxi service in due course. In the interim the existing contract has continued in operation.

As I have alluded to, my Department is aware that the newly established Office of Government Procurement (OGP) has begun work to develop a Taxi Services procurement strategy for use across the public service and my Department and its Offices intend to avail ourselves of this contract. While we await the results of the OGP public procurement process it is the intention of my Department to put a short-term contract in place. In this regard, the public procurement competition for Taxi Services for my Department and its Offices will be advertised on the eTenders portal to ensure maximum coverage to interested suppliers.

I should also inform the Deputy that in line with Department of Finance Circular 11/82 and my Department’s in-house Travel & Subsistence Policy, my Department has significantly reduced the expenditure incurred on taxi hire from some €46,000 in 2008 to less than €15,500 in 2013.