Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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411. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the frequency that Government agency and Department contracts for taxi services are required to be renewed or reviewed; the regulations and guidelines his Department provides on such contracts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37680/16]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The regulations which govern the procurement of taxi services by Government Bodies are contained in Statutory Instrument 284 of 2016.  Regulation 33(2) states that "the term of a framework agreement shall not exceed 4 years, other than in exceptional cases".

The Office of Government Procurement established a Framework Agreement for taxi services in the Greater Dublin Area, which commenced on April 1^st2015.  The Framework was established for an initial period of one year, renewable annually at the discretion of the Contracting Authority to a maximum duration of 4 years.  The Framework was subsequently extended by one year from April 1^st2016.  A decision has not been finalised in regard to the possibility of a further extension from April 1^st2017.  The OGP, prior to publishing a tender for taxi services to replace the existing Framework, will engage with market operators to ensure that any future tender competitions are appropriate to the market.