Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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630. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the average costs associated with processing and answering written and oral parliamentary questions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49127/17]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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The processing of individual Parliamentary Questions is undertaken as part of the normal day to day work of individual Sections within my Department and no staff in my Department are assigned full time to dealing with Parliamentary Questions.  The number and level of staff, and the time spent on individual replies, depends on the complexity and urgency of the issues raised, the ease of access to the required information, and the degree of cross-Divisional co-ordination required in preparing the reply.  Each Question may have input from staff within Sections, the Principal Officers and equivalents leading those sections, the relevant Assistant Secretary, the Secretary General and his office staff and the Minister and staff in his office. The cost of answering Parliamentary Questions can vary considerably, therefore, and it is not possible to readily quantify the administrative costs associated with the processing of individual Questions.