Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Foreign Affairs uses public awareness campaigns primarily to promote essential services to citizens at home and abroad such as passport and consular services. In recent years, public awareness campaigns in relation to COVID-19 travel restrictions and Brexit have formed a significant part of advertising costs.

As with other Government Departments, the Department of Foreign Affairs engages the services of a third-party media agency (PHD Media) for the purposes of advertisement placement and reaching audiences across a range of mediums including digital advertising, print media, radio, outdoor and TV.

The Department’s spend on advertising and public awareness campaigns is primarily conducted through this agency with the aim of maximising the audience reach, without direct engagement or financial transactions with social media organisations such as Twitter/X.

The below figures represent the costs of DFA HQ advertising activity placed with website Twitter/X that took place within each of the relevant calendar years.

X (formerly Twitter) total spend from 2019 – 30, November 2023: