Written answers
Tuesday, 15 January 2019
Department of Finance
Departmental Expenditure
Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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194. To ask the Minister for Finance the budget and spend in his Department for marketing, media and social media in each of the years 2016 to 2018; the projected spend for 2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54464/18]
Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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My department budgets in line with the subheadings outlined in the Revised Estimates Volume for Public Expenditure (REV). The budget for marketing, media and social media is included in Admin Non-Pay costs, specifically Subhead III:Training, Development, and Miscellaneous Costs.
Depending on the nature of the expenditure, it could also potentially be accounted for as part of our overall consultancy budget. However, the vast amount of our consultancy budget is to provide for the Department's requirement for legal or professional services and to cover any legal costs which arise.
As we budget at this level, we do not have details of projected spend in these categories for 2019. However, we expect spend to be broadly in line with the previous years, which are detailed in the table below.
A breakdown of my department's spending in the categories queried is available in the table.
| Year | Description | Spend |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Switch Your Bank | €24,682 |
| Mortgage Arrears Communication Campaign | €73,136 | |
| Outside Broadcasting of National Economic Dialogue | €17,657 | |
| 2017 | Switch Your Bank (of which: YouTube) | €717,820 €6,223 |
| Information notice re: Beneficial Ownership | €2,408 | |
| European Financial Forum | €25 | |
| Outside Broadcasting of National Economic Dialogue | €17,657 | |
| 2018 | Switch Your Bank (of which: YouTube) | €402,210 €8,896 |
| Independent Newspapers Marketing Ltd. | €1,240 | |
| Tuairisc Bheo Teoranta | €983 | |
| Outside Broadcasting of National Economic Dialogue | €13,617 |
The Switch Your Bank campaign is funded, in its entirety, by AIB and Permanent TSB, as part of a range of competition measures agreed with the European Commission to raise awareness and promote customer switching of financial products.
- The Department of Finance facilitates this campaign as part of its remit to ensure that consumers are protected within the financial sector in Ireland and to ensure a healthy level of competition.
- The contract with Language Communications permitted them to appoint subcontractors for provision of services.
- Phase one of the public awareness campaign cost €738,000 in total.
- Phase two of the public awareness campaign will cost €405,900 in total.
- An additional €738 was spent on web hosting for the Switch Your Bank campaign.
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