Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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663. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the amount spent by his Department on photography by photographer and or agency, public relations or communications advice external to the media officers of his Department, by agency; the use of public relations or communications advice by an agency fully funded by his Department by agency and month, in tabular form since 1 January 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6751/18]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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My Department did not incur any expenditure on external agency, public relations or communications advice since 1 January 2016. The engagement of external expertise is generally only considered where the issues involved require expert skills or capabilities that are not readily available within my Department. Press and Public Relations are undertaken by my Department’s Press Office.

In addition, my Department’s Press Office generally provides photographic services when required. However, on such occasions where this is not possible, a service provider is selected from the OGP panel in line with the procurement framework and procurement guidelines.

My Department has not incurred any expenditure on photography in 2018. Details of expenditure in 2016 and 2017 are set out in the following tables:

Photography 2016

Photography 2017

In the main, the agencies operating under the remit of my Department are not exclusively funded by the Exchequer. In any event, the information sought, insofar as those agencies are concerned, is an operational matter for the agencies themselves.

Arrangements have been put in place by each agency to facilitate the provision of information by State Bodies directly to members of the Oireachtas. The contact email address for each agency is in the table: