Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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352. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if his Department will publish the procurement related payment reports (details supplied) in machine-readable formats such as CSV or excel on a quarterly basis, in line with open data standards; if not, the legal, technical, or operational constraints that prevent compliance with the requirement under S.I. No. 376/2021 to provide such documents in open, machine-readable formats for reuse; and the steps his Department has or plans to take to align its reporting practices with open data principles to improve accessibility, transparency, and re-use of this information by the public. [47763/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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Open Data is important for building trust in government and for driving innovation and public service transformation, and it also supports scientific and technological innovation and is central to the delivery of a whole range of vital public services and societal goals. Ireland’s high score on the Open Data Maturity ranking and recognition as an innovator in this area in Europe marks a significant commitment to transparency, trust and improved Open Data policy. Ireland scored 95% on Open Data Maturity overall in 2025, significantly outperforming the European average of 79% and has been a consistent leader in making public data open and accessible. We plan to keep up this standard in 2025, as we continue to deliver on our Open Data Strategy 2023-2027.

To date, my Department has published procurement related payment reports up to and including Q2 2025 in PDF (Portable Document Format) as it is machine readable, maintains formatting and page layout regardless of the device used to access the data. Going forward, recognising the need to make information as accessible as possible, my Department will publish these reports in machine-readable formats such as CSV or excel on a quarterly basis, in line with open data standards.

Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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354. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to provide, by quarter since Q2 2023, the compliance rate of contracting authorities with Circular 05/2023 in respect of advertising of contracts at or above the thresholds (€50,000 for goods/services, €200,000 for works, €50,000 for works-related services), publication of all contract awards €25,000 on eTenders, including off-platform procurements, and timely completion of contract award data fields;and to list the contracting authorities identified as non-compliant in each quarter and the corrective actions required. [47773/25]

Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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353. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the governance arrangements in place to monitor compliance with Circular 05/2023; the Department or OGP units responsible; the tools and data sources used to check compliance; the frequency of review; and the escalation process where contracting authorities are found to be non-compliant. [47772/25]

Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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356. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform whether his Department has engaged directly with contracting authorities identified as failing to meet Circular 05/2023 obligations; and to provide details of those engagements and agreed remediation steps. [47775/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 354, 353 and 356 together.

My Department has no role in monitoring compliance in the manner suggested by the Deputy. My Department has responsibility for developing and setting out the overarching policy framework and associated guidelines to facilitate compliance with public procurement rules and relevant Government policies. 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 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.

Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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355. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform further to section 1.4 of Circular 05/2023, to confirm whether a formal review has been initiated, the methodology and data sources being used, preliminary or final findings regarding SME participation and operational efficiency; and when the review report will be published. [47774/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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In March 2023, my Department published Circular 05/2023: Initiatives to assist SMEs in Public Procurement. The circular highlights the positive measures that Contracting Authorities can take to promote SME participation in public procurement across the public sector. The circular also includes a commitment that the measures will be kept under review in light of their impact on SME participation and operational efficiency. The Deputy should note, the commitment in the circular is that the measures contained therein will be kept under review, and not that the totality of the measures will be subject to a formal review.

My Department engages directly with SME representative bodies, through the SME Advisory Group, and with public buyers, through a dedicated Service Delivery Unit, to review the impact of the circular on SME participation and operational efficiency.

The Programme for Government includes a commitment to reviewing the public procurement process to make it more transparent and encourage greater participation from SMEs. Working towards this aim, and to set out the strategic direction of public procurement for the next five years, my Department is developing a first national public procurement strategy. One of the foundational policy positions of the strategy is to make participation easier for suppliers. Through an extensive public consultation and three Roadshows, my Department has been listening to the views of SMEs to progress this objective. A dedicated webinar with suppliers will take place on 23 September 2025 to share the feedback that we have received from suppliers during the consultation phase and provide suppliers with a final opportunity to feed into the strategy’s development.

My officials have reviewed the submissions to the public consultation and the insights garnered from the Roadshows. This feedback has been brought into the next phase of consultation, which involves discussions with key stakeholders to agree desired outcomes and actions for inclusion in the strategy.

It would not be appropriate for me to speculate at this stage and predetermine the outcome of the extensive consultation being undertaken by my Department, which is critical to understanding the primary challenges and opportunities for both public bodies and suppliers. Following this key stage, I will work with colleagues across government to agree actions to support the delivery of strategic, innovative, sustainable and transparent public procurement that promotes competition, value for money and increased participation of SMEs, building on the progress made to date through Circular 05/2023 and its predecessors.