Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

259. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the expenditure details for all consultancy or audit services provided to her Department by a company (details supplied) from 2015 to 2018, inclusive, and to date in 2019; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7561/19]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The procurement of external consultancy services is essential to support my Department in providing high quality service to the public in a cost effective and efficient manner.

The Department is engaged in a number of service delivery modernisation and transformation programmes involving business process, organisational and technological change. These programmes are supported by the procurement of separate external development services (IT external service provision) as well as engagement of external consultants to provide strategic technical advice and audit services.

Consultants are engaged for a fixed period following procurement exercises conducted in accordance with Department procedures that are compliant with EU and national legislation and with guidelines set down by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

A breakdown of annual expenditure on consultancy, including audit services, and IT external service provision, and a list of purchase orders for €20,000 and above, is available on the Department’s website at . Under the FOI publication scheme and with effect from January 2016, the Department also publishes details of public contracts awarded over €25k at .

All consultancy and audit services in my Department are paid from the consultancy budget (A2(vii)subhead). There were no contracts awarded for consultancy or audit services to the company, detailed in the question by the Deputy, from 2015 to 2018 and to date in 2019.