Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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321. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the amount spent on social media advertising and online promoted content (details supplied) in 2018 and to date in 2019, by campaign and social media platform used; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11117/19]

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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322. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she has engaged and-or consulted with a public relations online advertising agency regarding social media advertising and online promoted content in 2018 and to date in 2019; the amount spent by company; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11134/19]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 321 and 322 together.

In 2018, expenditure of €66,420 was incurred in respect of social media relating to the Creative Ireland Programme. This arose from a comprehensive citizen engagement programme (curated and implemented by a contracted digital content agency) to showcase the range and depth of Ireland's cultural and creative offering and to encourage participation in arts and creative activities as a means of individual, collective and societal well-being. The vision of the Creative Ireland Programme is that every person in Ireland should have the opportunity to realise their full creative potential. This represents a new approach to creativity and cultural policy and therefore requires a sustained ongoing communications programme.   

I am also advised that in 2018 the Culture Ireland Unit engaged Mr. Nik Quaife on a 1 year contract for the provision of services including a communications strategy for its GB18 programme, to celebrate and renew Ireland’s cultural relationship with Britain.  Expenditure of €51,400 was incurred in respect of these services.

My Department also engaged D’Arcy Marketing and Big O on 2018 at a cost of €17,466 and €6,125 respectively to promote awareness of the 2018 European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) campaign for the recruitment of Irish language translators to the institutions of the European Union.  

In addition to the above, further expenditure of €5,535 has been incurred to date in 2019 by the Creative Ireland Programme and €2,446 by the Culture Ireland unit in respect of social media costs. 

Value for money is always an important consideration for my Department when assessing expenditure of this nature.