Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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62. To ask the Minister for Finance the total expenditure on consultancy by his Department; the number of consultants engaged by his Department, in the years 2011 to 2014; the names of the consultancy companies awarded contracts; and the steps which have been taken to reduce the expenditure on consultancy, and the reliance on consultants by his Department, in these years, and for the future. [18949/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the table below and is taken from the information already published on my Department's website.  The nature of my Department's work is such that, from time to time, reliance on specialist advice is the optimal route. In using such consultancies, my Department seeks not only to obtain value for money, but to target the best return possible for the State.

Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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63. To ask the Minister for Finance if he will provide the number and the names of external consultant companies engaged by his Department to undertake information technology related work for the Revenue Commissioners in the years 2011 to 2014; the number of persons supplied by these companies to work on such projects; the amount paid to each company for these services in each of these years; the invoicing contract payment mechanism used, if it was by hour, by project, by person or by a combination of these mechanisms; the verification mechanisms in place to ensure that the invoicing and contract payment mechanisms reflected work actually carried out; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18954/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the details sought by the Deputy are set out in the following tables. Where the work was undertaken on a "per person per day" basis, details of the number of persons engaged are set out in the table.

Information regarding the number of persons engaged is not available where companies were engaged to deliver a specific body of work or project. It should also be noted that the amount paid may not relate to work done solely in that particular year i.e. work delivered in a particular year may not have been paid until the following year. Companies providing external resources were selected following a tendering process in 2010 and in 2013.

The work undertaken by external resources is supervised and authorised by Revenue management. Payments in respect of resources working on per diem rates are based on the work-days reported by Revenue managers. Payments in respect of project work are based on invoices certified by Revenue managers.

External resources working in Revenue are obliged to adhere to the Revenue Delivery Method (RDM) which is a comprehensive guide to the activities required to deliver high-value ICT solutions and services for Revenue. It provides Revenue ICT teams with proven processes, deliverables and techniques that enable them to define what to do and how to do it.

Expenditure on external IT resources is required by Revenue to engage computer experts to develop, support and maintain critical IT projects, such as Integrated Taxpayer Processing and Revenue On-Line Services. The software developments that result from such expenditure are tangible assets and are recognised as such in Revenue's Annual Appropriation Account.