Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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90. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his Department and any commercial or non-commercial State bodies and private entities subsidised by 50% or more of public funding under the aegis of his Department have implemented social clauses in their public procurement contracts in the past three years (details supplied); and if so, the nature of these social clauses. [39049/20]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department operates in a number of locations in Ireland and approximately 90 locations worldwide. It comprises two Votes; Vote 27 International Cooperation and Vote 28 Foreign Affairs.

The Department ensures that there is an appropriate focus on good practice in procurement and that procedures are in place to ensure compliance with all relevant procurement guidelines. Procurement takes place in compliance with Directive 2014/24/EU and supported by Procurement Guidelines published by the Office of Government Procurement (OGP).

These rules require the Department to award contracts under procedures designed to achieve value for public money in an open, transparent and non-discriminatory competitive process.

The Department, as a contracting authority, recognises that public procurement can be used to promote wider social considerations. The general position from a procurement perspective is that social criteria can be included in the procurement process provided that they are linked to the subject matter of the contract and are contract specific.

The range of policy areas that come under social considerations include, for example environment sustainability, disability access, good employment practices, training for young or disadvantaged people.

I recognise that social clauses are most effectively utilised in large-scale works contracts as opposed to contracts for goods and services. The majority of the Departments procurement contracts are with small firms or individuals providing professional, consultancy and general services. However, procurement contracts in the Department for general services and ICT managed services requires contractors, as employers, to be fully compliant with labour rules, collective agreements and the EU Employment Directives. Tenderers are excluded from competition if they fail to meet the required social criteria.

Other examples of social considerations in the Departments procurement contracts under environment sustainability is the introduction of solar panel energy to a number of our Embassies abroad with further projects planned and the introduction of product specifications for the purchase of hybrid motor vehicles.

The Department will proceed to implement social clauses in its procurement contracts in a targeted manner in compliance with the 2019 OGP Guidance Note and the EU Procurement Directive.