Written answers

Wednesday, 20 November 2019

Department of Public Expenditure and Reform

Departmental Expenditure

Photo of Barry CowenBarry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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98. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount spent on public relations, promotion and advertising for the National Development Plan 2018-2027 and Project Ireland 2040 since its publication in February 2018 by category (details supplied) in tabular form. [48131/19]

Photo of Paschal DonohoePaschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Project Ireland 2040 is the Government's long-term, overarching strategy to make Ireland a better country for all its people, integrating, for the first time, the national spatial and investment strategies. The projects under these plans which include roads, schools, primary care centres, housing, sporting and cultural amenities and business activation facilities impact villages, towns, cities and regions across the length and breadth of Ireland.

Since taking responsibility for communications for Project Ireland 2040, €92,954.26 has been spent by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on public information measures including the launch of the first Annual Report - see breakdown in Table A. Measures included three 2-week tranches of transit advertising on public transport networks throughout Ireland, with the specific aim of empowering members of the public to find out what is happening under Project Ireland 2040 in their local area. During each phase, the material was displayed on the Red and Green Luas lines as well as approximately 500 Dublin Buses, 50 Irish Rail carriages and 100 Bus Shelters in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford and nationwide. The material directed the audience to gov.ie/2040. That website has received more than 50,000 hits in the period.

The Annual Report contained in-depth information about what has happened under the plan and what is yet to come. It was launched in the Glucksman Library at the University of Limerick, one of the early projects supported by Project Ireland 2040 in the heart of Limerick, a key growth city under the plan.

Table A

Creative Media-Buy Printing Annual Report Launch
€34,687.23 €46,401.72 €4,273.02 €7,592.31

The cost for a wide-ranging, multi-media public awareness campaign was met by the Department of the Taoiseach including: content production, digital promotion* media partnerships and cinema campaign, public transport network campaign (content production only – space was provided free of charge) - details are set out in Table.

*Digital promotion includes search engines, to ensure the public is directed to the sites that deliver the services/information they are looking for, space on social media, including Twitter Facebook and Youtube, to ensure strong dissemination of Government information.

Table B - Project Ireland 2040 - multi-media public awareness campaign

Content creation 252,892.92
Digital (including Facebook Twitter, Youtube and search) 75,394.83
Content partnerships 325,500.01
Media launches etc 98,345.34
Cinema campaign 96,975.50
Total 849,108.60

Photo of Shane CassellsShane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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99. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount spent on purchasing mobile telephones for staff within his Department for work-related business in each of the years 2016 to 2018 and to date in 2019, by grade; if his Department has a contract with a mobile telephone company (details supplied) to supply mobile telephones if needed; if so, the name of the company; the date on which the contract for the supply of mobile telephones to his Department is next due to expire; and the robust steps taken to ensure that the costs incurred on work related telephones are the best value for the taxpayer. [47926/19]

Photo of Paschal DonohoePaschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform currently have a contract in place with Three Ireland for the supply of Mobile Phone Services & Handsets, this contract is due to expire in April 2020. All mobile phones are currently procured from the Three Ireland contract, the contract was awarded on foot of a public procurement competition for the Provision of Mobile Phone Services and Handsets. The Department is currently in the process of a market exercise for the successor contract run under the Office of Government Procurement’s Mobile Phone Framework. Public procurement measures ensure that there are robust steps in place in the process and that the tenders are evaluated and awarded on the basis of the most economically advantageous tender thus providing the best value to the taxpayer.

Amount spent on purchasing Mobile Phones by year

2016 2017 2018 2019 to date
€16,863.30 €18,443.37 €10,132.74 €7,206.08

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