Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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113. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the safeguards and oversight procedures, if any, that are put in place by his Department to monitor the projects of State agencies following sign-off on expenditure by the Department, and if his Department's officials followed up with the Arts Council following the sign-off provided to its digital transformation programme in 2019. [8422/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is responsible for drawing up and circulating the general rules and frameworks within which public investment by other Government Departments and other bodies under their aegis must be made. The aim of these rules and frameworks, with which Government Departments and public bodies must comply, is to set out in the oversight and governance frameworks for public investment with a view to ensuring effective delivery and securing value for money.Principally, these general frameworks include:

• The 2016 Code of Practice of the Governance of State Bodies;

• Public Financial Procedures;

• Grant Circular 13/2014;

• Infrastructure Guidelines;

• Public Procurement Guidelines; and

• Circular 14/2021 in relation to arrangements for oversight of Digital/IT projects and initiatives.

In relation to digital and ICT projects, my Department, through the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO), has an oversight role in relation to such initiatives in the Civil and Public Service. These arrangements are set out in Circular 14/2021 (which superseded Circular 2/2016 and a number of earlier similar such circulars). The circular clearly identifies it as the responsibility of the relevant Public Service Body to request specific approval of the OGCIO where there is significant variation to a project that was previously approved by OGCIO.

It should be noted that following the difficulties with the IT project brought to its attention by the Arts Council, that the OGCIO provided support to the Arts Council to assist the Arts Council, and its parent department, with their deliberations on how to address the difficulties with its IT Project. The focus of the OGCIO throughout was on the technical issues with the project and not on the budgetary implications, which were a matter for the Arts Council and its parent department.