Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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57. To ask the Taoiseach the number of credit cards issued to Ministers of State and officials working in his Department, the amount spent on credit cards by his Department in 2014 and in 2015; the amount of bank interest paid on credit cards in 2014 and 2015; the controls in place to monitor the issuing of and the expenditure on these cards; the controls in place in each agency to monitor expenditure on personally held credit card bills that are subsequently used to recoup work related expenses; if these controls are being reviewed in view of recent events in agencies funded by the HSE; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24638/16]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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58. To ask the Taoiseach the number of credit cards issued to staff working in each State agency funded by his Department, in tabular form; the number of cards per funded agency; the amount spent by credit card in 2014 and 2015 by each agency; the amount of bank interest paid on credit cards in 2014 and 2015; the controls in place to monitor the issuing of and the expenditure on these cards; the controls in place in each agency to monitor expenditure on personally held credit card bills that are subsequently used to recoup work related expenses; if these controls are being reviewed in view of recent events in agencies funded by the HSE; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24639/16]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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59. To ask the Taoiseach the number of credit cards issued to staff working in any third party agency funded by his Department, in tabular form; the number of cards per funded agency; the amount spent by credit card in 2014 and 2015 by each agency; the controls in place to monitor the issuing of and the expenditure on these cards; the controls in place in each agency to monitor expenditure on credit card bills that are subsequently used to recoup work related expenses; if these controls are being reviewed in view of recent events in agencies funded by the HSE; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24640/16]

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 57 to 59, inclusive, together.

No credit cards are issued to Ministers in my Department. A total of five credit cards are currently in use for official purposes assigned to three Heads of Divisions and two Private Secretaries. During 2014, a total of €39,250 was charged to these cards. During 2015, a total of €29,004 was charged to these cards. No interest amounts were paid in either year.

Departmental credit cards are used for official purposes only. They are allocated to officials where the facility will be of practical use in meeting the requirements of official business, for example, to cover travel expenses and official entertainment while away from the office; and to procure goods and services such as on-line conferences bookings, air travel, purchase of IT equipment and library supplies. Increasingly, on-line bookings for flights, hotels, rail travel and newspaper subscriptions can only be secured with credit cards and online discounts or better value rates are applied for such bookings.

The use of official credit cards is closely monitored by my Department's Finance Unit on an ongoing basis. Expenditure must be supported by receipts submitted by card holders each month as part of the approval process for the associated expenditure. The allocation and use of official credit cards are reviewed on an ongoing basis, with a view to minimising the number of cards allocated.

In general, staff in my Department do not use personal credit cards for official expenses. However, if an official expense is incurred on a personal credit card, the expense can be reimbursed as long as the purchase adheres to normal procurement and approval guidelines.

The National Economic and Social Development Office (NESDO), a body under the aegis of my Department, has two credit cards in operation. A total amount of €10,936 was charged to those credit cards in 2014 and €12,569 was charged to those cards in 2015. No bank interest was paid in either year. Credit cards are used for official purposes only, for example, travel related expenses, conference attendances, ordering research articles and payment of subscriptions. Credit cards are only used where normal procurement procedures (i.e. using a Purchase Order) cannot be applied, for example, paying foreign hotel bills. It is not the practice for NESDO staff to use personal credit cards for work purposes.