asked the Minister for Finance if he will state in respect of each of the years 1952, 1953, 1954 and 1955 (a) the value of articles of furniture, other than floor-coverings, tapestries and textile materials, purchased by the Commissioners of Public Works, (b) the value of such purchases (i) put into use and (ii) put into stock, and (c) how many firms were requested to tender for the Commissioners' requirements, and whether requests to tender were confined to manufacturers only or were also extended to firms in the distributing trade.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Furniture Purchases by Commissioners of Public Works.
(a) The approximate value of articles of furniture other than floor coverings, tapestries and textile materials purchased under contract and at public sales by the Commissioners of Public Works in each of the years 1952, 1953, 1954 and 1955 was £31,000, £21,000, £19,000 and £18,000 respectively. In addition many small items of furniture, delph, cutlery etc. required for day-to-day use in the various establishments throughout the country are purchased on individual orders. Segregation of the figures of expenditure on such purchases would involve the examination of several thousand vouchers and the work entailed would not, I consider, be warranted.
(b) Purchases of furniture are made for the purpose of meeting immediate or current demands and save in the case of standard articles such as office tables and chairs are not intended for stock. Purchases of standard articles are made in bulk and include anticipated demands over limited periods. The value of such goods awaiting issue from store varies from day to day.
(c) During the period referred to, approximately 100 different firms were invited to tender for the Commissioners' requirements. These were for the most part manufacturing firms. Where the value of a contract is estimated to exceed £500 the contract is also advertised in the public Press. In practice, individual orders for small items are placed with distributing firms.