Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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695. To ask the Minister for Health the public relations companies or agencies whose services his Department used for information campaigns since 1 January 2017; and the costs incurred to date in 2017. [46079/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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It is the policy in my Department only to engage the services of external groups where it is felt to be appropriate and cost-effective. As the Deputy will be aware, as a consequence of the decision of the UK to leave the EU, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) must be relocated to another Member State. Government decided that a whole-of-Government approach will be taken to promoting the relocation of the EMA to Dublin.

In view of the complexity of this task, it was determined that external support was needed in respect of key elements of the bid preparation and communications process. In this context my Department invited tenders from a number of potential providers, seeking public relations/public affairs and communications support. After the competitive process, Hume Brophy was announced as the preferred bidder.

This contract ended on 13 July and cost a total of €114,491.