Aidan Farrelly (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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246. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence if his attention has been drawn to other State agencies and if his own Government Department have used any of the same IT services providers as the Arts Council (details supplied) and have experienced cost overruns or encountered delays or other issues with them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11936/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I can confirm that my Department has engaged with Codec on the development and roll-out of the Civil Defence Volunteer and Equipment Management System (VEMS). This digital transformation project manages registration of volunteers, Garda vetting, volunteer training, competencies, deployments, equipment maintenance and ordering stock. The system includes an online portal where Civil Defence volunteers can apply for training and respond to deployment requests.

The VEMS system went live in July 2023 and was delivered in line with the project budget. The project won the ‘Workforce of the Future Award’ at 9th Civil Service Excellence & Innovation Awards in 2024. The system is in daily use and provided very important support to Civil Defence units throughout the country during the recent extreme weather events.