Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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220. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the final cost of public procurement tenders, by the number of tenders where the final cost was under, on or over the estimated cost at the time of tendering, by each category and by each year, in tabular form (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4426/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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Circular 05/2023 sets out that all public procurement tenders, where they have an estimated value above specified national thresholds, must be advertised on the national electronic tendering platform (eTenders). As such, the estimated value of individual public procurement tenders is captured in a central system (eTenders) and available to my Department to report on, on an aggregated basis, for all public procurement. Once a tender competition is concluded and a contract awarded, individual Contracting Authorities manage the expenditure incurred on their contracts, in their relevant financial systems. These financial systems are manifold and are distinct and separate to the national tendering system (eTenders). As such, information on individual Contracting Authorities expenditure at a contract level for all public procurement tenders, is not information that is held by, or available to my Department to report on centrally.

In general, the estimated value of a tender is established to help a Contracting Authority determine the appropriate public procurement regulations, policy and procedures that apply to their competition, and also to help the market assess the suitability of the opportunity to their business. Expenditure incurred off contracts that are established on foot of a public procurement tender, is generally managed against a contract award value rather than a tender’s estimated value. The extent to which financial systems, used by Contracting Authorities, link contracts to information captured at the tendering stage is varied and inconsistent.

The potential benefits that could arise from having greater connections between data from the tendering (pre-award) and the expenditure (post-award) stages of public procurement transactions are recognised, and my Department is continuously seeking to identify opportunities to make better use of data across all aspects of public procurement, notwithstanding the operational and data governance and sharing challenges that exist in that regard.

Public procurement practices are subject to audit and scrutiny under the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993, and the Local Government Reform Act 2014. Individual Accounting Officers are responsible for ensuring that their public procurement functions are discharged in line with the standard accounting and procurement rules and procedures and are publicly accountable for expenditure incurred. Individual Contracting Authorities are responsible for establishing arrangements for ensuring the proper conduct of their affairs, including conformance to standards of good governance and accountability with regard to public procurement.