Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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31. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he is satisfied that public procurement rules as set out by the Office of Government Procurement are being adhered to by each Department and public body to which they apply; the way he satisfies himself that these rules are being adhered to; if there are penalties for those Departments or public bodies which do not adhere to the rules; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18706/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Public Procurement is governed by well-established EU and National rules and guidelines. The aim of these rules is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime which delivers best value for money.

EU Directives on public procurement require that public contracts above certain financial thresholds must be advertised on the Official Journal of the EU and awarded on the basis of objective and non-restrictive criteria. In the case of works contracts the threshold is €5.225 million; for supplies and service contracts awarded by Government Departments the threshold is €135,000 and for the remainder of public bodies the threshold is €209,000. The threshold for supplies and service contracts of entities operating in utility sectors is €418,000.

For contracts below these financial thresholds, it is a basic principle that a competitive process should be used unless there are justifiably exceptional circumstances. For example, contracts for goods and services with an estimated value of €25,000 and up to the value of the EU thresholds should normally be advertised on E-tenders using the open procedure.

It is the responsibility of each contracting authority to ensure that they comply with EU and national rules in relation to public procurement. Template Request for Tender and contracts documents have been developed in conjunction with the Chief State Solicitor's Office and the Office of the Attorney General to assist contracting authorities carrying out routine, non-bespoke and low to medium risk procurements.

In relation to oversight of Government contracts awards, public procurement practices are subject to audit and scrutiny under the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993, and the Local Government Reform Act 2014, and Accounting Officers are publicly accountable for expenditure incurred. Individual contracting authorities are responsible for establishing arrangements for ensuring the proper conduct of their affairs, including conformance to standards of good governance and accountability with regard to procurement.

Finally in relation to penalties, the Remedies Regulations (S.I. Nos. 130 and 131 of 2010 and S.I. Nos. 192 and 193 of 2015) allow tenderers or candidates the option of seeking recourse through the courts if they feel that a procurement process was not carried out in an open, fair and transparent manner.