Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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352. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his Department has a designated head of procurement; if each agency or public body under his Department’s remit also has a designated head of procurement; and if so, to list those entities, along with the name or grade of the person holding that role. [33639/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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My Department and its Offices operates a devolved procurement function which is led at Principal Officer level. Each Business Unit and Office is responsible for the procurement of their own individual contracts with the support and advice from the Principal Officer in the Department who heads up the Procurement Co-ordination Unit.

In respect of the Agencies of my Department the following is the position.

The Competition & Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has three members of staff who support procurement activities across the organisation and those staff report to the Head of Administration at Assistant Principal level.

In the Corporate Enforcement Authority (CEA) individual Directors are responsible for procurement compliance with advice and assistance provided by the Governance & Support Operations Directorate.

Enterprise Ireland has a designated Head of Procurement role at Level E grade. The position is currently vacant, and recruitment is in progress.

IDA Ireland has a devolved system of procurement and provides compliance support to contract managers/budget holders through its designated Procurement Specialist, which is a permanent management oversight position.

The Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority (IAASA)’s Head of Corporate Services, Principal Officer (Higher) equivalent acts as Head of Procurement.

The National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) designated Head of Procurement is, at Grade D level.

In the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) the responsibility for procurement falls within the portfolio of the Head of Finance and Facilities Management. This role is undertaken by an experienced Assistant Principal (Higher grade). In addition, the Authority retains the services of a procurement advisor, to support its procurement activities.

In Fáilte Ireland, the Head of Finance, (principal officer equivalent) has overall responsibility for procurement. A procurement manger (assistant principal equivalent) and their team report into the Head of Finance.

Tourism Ireland’s procurement function is managed by a Procurement Officer Grade D, with oversight by Tourism Ireland’s Financial Controller.

Finally, the Personal Injuries Resolution Board (PIRB) is a self-funded body. The procurement function is under the Finance Directorate. Their Finance Manager is the Injuries Resolution Board nominated Procurement Officer. They are currently in the process of recruiting a dedicated Procurement Officer to work in this area.

Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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353. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of staff within his Department and its agencies who hold a formal procurement qualification or certification (for example, CIPS, NFQ Level 6 or higher in procurement, EU public procurement training), broken down by organisation, in tabular form. [33657/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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My Department regularly facilitates informal Procurement Training through in-house programmes offered by its internal Learning and Career Development Unit and its Procurement Unit. Further public procurement training, though non-accredited, is readily accessible through the various programmes available to staff members through the Office of Government Procurement’s (OGP) Commercial Skills Academy (CSA).

In terms of accredited training, though not an essential qualification for those in procurement-related roles, is highly encouraged and supported through my Department’s annual Advanced Payment of Fees Scheme where staff members are invited to apply for funding for third-level courses in subject areas relevant to the mandate of the Department.

In respect of the agencies that come within my remit, they are statutorily independent in their functions and this is an operational matter for them. I have, therefore, referred the Deputy's question to the agencies for direct reply.

I have set out in the table below a record of the numbers of staff members in my Department and its offices who currently hold accredited qualifications in Procurement.

Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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354. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his Department and each agency or public body under its remit uses a formal contract management system or procurement tracking platform; to list the systems in use; and if they are centrally monitored or independently operated. [33675/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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My Department maintains a contracts register. It is based on Lotus Notes and we are currently examining options to upgrade it. Under our devolved procurement model, Business Units and the Offices of the Department are required to update the Register upon the signing of a contract and enter the specific details of the contract. The register is administered by my Department’s Procurement Co-ordination Unit.

In respect of the Agencies of my Department the following is the position.

The Competition & Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) uses an internal Excel spreadsheet to centrally monitor its contracts.

The Corporate Enforcement Authority (CEA) uses Microsoft products to manage procurement information. It is monitored centrally.

Enterprise Ireland uses an excel based Contracts Register to record details all contracts. It is monitored centrally.

Fáilte Ireland uses a formal Contract Management System called ACCORD that is centrally monitored by its Procurement Unit.

The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) uses a contracts register, which is manually updated and recorded in Microsoft Excel. It is centrally monitored.

The Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority (IAASA), uses an internal Excel spreadsheet to track its contracts. It is monitored centrally.

IDA Ireland contracts are managed via the relevant IDA named contract manager. IDA’s Capital Projects are designed, procured and managed by IDA appointed external consultants.

The National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) uses a financial system, Integra to issue purchase orders and approve invoices. This is also used in respect of payments for contracts.

Personal Injuries Resolution Board (PIRB) uses an internally developed excel system to manage contracts and procurement which is monitored in house under the Director of Finance.

Tourism Ireland maintains its contracts register via MS SharePoint. SharePoint is also used for procurement process tracking purposes. These SharePoint sites were created and are monitored centrally by Tourism Ireland’s ICT Team.