Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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276. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the amount her Department has expended to date regarding awareness raising campaigns of Covid-19 in national newspapers, regional newspapers, national radio, regional and local radio stations and across social media platforms; and the amount committed to expend under any current contracts or agreements with same in tabular form. [10481/21]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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I have been informed by officials in my Department that no funding has been allocated to, or contracts entered into, for awareness-raising campaigns relating to Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.

My Department is actively engaged in delivering Covid-19 information and communications to the public and to stakeholders through various channels, including traditional and social media, and stakeholder meetings. This work is carried out in-house by the communications team and other teams within the Department. Communications activities are very important at this time and cost-effectiveness is always a factor in my Department’s plans and actions.

As part of its policy response to the crisis, my Department has supported a range of measures which provide creative material and performances online, which would normally have been presented to live audiences.