Carol Nolan (Offaly, Independent)
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366. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the details of all reports, including consultancy reports commissioned by his Department from 1 January 2024 to date in 2025, that could be categorised as not for external publication or marked for internal use only; the cost of each report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57289/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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My Department considers commissioning reports in cases where there is not the necessary expertise to deliver a project in-house, in cases where an external assessment is deemed essential, or in cases where a report must be completed within a short time scale, and although the expertise or experience may be available in-house, performing the task would involve a prohibitive opportunity cost.

My Department complies with the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation’s guidelines for engagements of consultants by the civil service, having regard to public procurement guidelines.

With regard to the release of reports, my Department endeavours to publish commissioned reports wherever possible, however, some reports relate to internal matters of the Department, to commercially or otherwise sensitive matters, or are considered technical advice which contributes to broader policy making. In such instances, these reports are not ordinarily published.

The reports commissioned by my Department since 2024 which are not currently published or are for internal use are set out in tabular form below: