Ruairí Quinn
Question:3 Mr. Quinn asked the Taoiseach the cost of the media monitoring unit established within the Government Information Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3891/98]
Ceisteanna — Questions. - Government Information Service.
The communications unit is a new initiative designed to serve all Government Ministers and to improve and expand the services provided by the Government Information Service. The principal focus of the unit is to provide a comprehensive information service to Government Ministers and their Departments on Government policy initiatives and developments and alert them to any problems which may arise in relation to their implementation.
The estimated annual cost to my Department of running the unit is £80,000. This covers the manager's salary, shift allowances paid to six staff on secondment from Government Departments and other general administration costs. Salaries of the staff seconded continue to be paid by their parent Departments. There is no increase in Civil Service staff numbers. There is a cost offset in that the service has the effect of lowering costs across all Government Departments by reducing duplication of work and expenses in the media area. The work of the unit means that Departments are reducing the use of external companies and no longer duplicate work such as transcripts and tapes, thereby saving Government Departments considerable costs. Based on the work the unit has undertaken since its inception, it is estimated that in a full year the unit will achieve substantial cost savings on behalf of Government Departments and provide a far more efficient service.
I pay tribute to the ability of the accounting services in the Civil Service to do wonderful double counting. Is that service plugged into the credit union league? Is the Taoiseach satisfied that he carried out a comprehensive review of what was happening to alert Departments to problems in the media? If so, what communication took place between the monitoring service and the Department of Finance?
The small number of staff involved in the monitoring unit pick up issues to do with Government policy and initiatives and speedily and efficiently inform Departments, ministerial offices, secretaries' offices and information units in various Departments. Having been made aware of these matters, Departments can then act promptly. Wherever there is a Government policy initiative it makes all members of the Government and Departments aware of what other Ministers and Ministers of State are doing. The unit provides a service for all Government Departments and reduces the use of external companies by providing tapes and videos of programmes. The communications unit does not follow the initiatives through but makes Government Departments aware of them so that they can act on them.
The estimated annual cost of the unit is £80,000, irrespective of any possible savings in other Government Departments. Between the publication on Thursday last of the Finance Bill, the stories that began to break on Friday morning and the decision of the Minister for Finance to go on the Rodney Rice programme on Saturday between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., was the Taoiseach or any section of the monitoring unit in contact with the Minister for Finance, was the Minister for Finance advised to take the line he took for the entire hour and if so, at what stage was the decision taken to throw away the pick and the shovel and to bury him?
That is a separate question.
How does the communications unit relate to the Government Information Service? Is he aware that a press report indicated that a public servant working for the unit has stated that unless it can respond within an hour to any issue raised in the media he would consider that the unit is not of much service? Will the Taoiseach confirm that the purpose of the unit is to assist Ministers to write policy as they go along and to knee-jerk in response to any comments made in the media and change policy according to the diktats of the communications unit?
We did not pick up any of the Deputy's bad habits.
I rebut those remarks. The civil servants involved are focusing on providing a comprehensive information service to Government Departments. They are part of the Government Information Service. What was happening in Government Departments in recent years on key issues, such as Northern Ireland, was that several Departments were using outside agencies to get the one tape, for which they paid enormous amounts of money. In my Department last year about £12,000 would have been paid for such tapes. They are now available to all Departments at no cost other than the cost to the information units in Government Departments. This is not a unit spinning anything about anyone or for anyone. It merely passes on information on INN, PA or the national airwaves of RTÉ and Government Departments acting on the policy initiative. It is making Government work and is providing a better service to the taxpayer rather than the massive duplication and unnecessary expenditure that has taken place in the past. This House should pay tribute to the GIS for having thought up this remarkable initiative.
Will the Taoiseach indicate the names of the manager and the six members of staff operating the communications unit? Are they all civil servants and will he indicate on what the £80,000 is spent?
The manager is Mr. Marty Whelan but I do not have the names of the civil servants. The money is spent on the ongoing costs of the unit and covers the manager's salary and the shift allowances. One of those in the unit is from the Taoiseach's Department and the others are on secondment from Departments. It also covers the day to day costs of tapes, paper, biros and so on.
Question No. 4 please.
May I ask the Taoiseach——
The Deputy will have to be brief as other Deputies are waiting.
What is Marty Whelan's salary?
That is a separate question and I suggest the Deputy put down a separate question.
A Cheann Comhairle, you are blocking efforts to get information for Deputies.
That information was not sought in the question tabled.
What is Marty Whelan's salary and is he still a member of Fianna Fáil?
Question No. 4 please.
On a point of order.
I have ruled that it is a separate question and the Deputy should proceed to put down a question.
There is a question on the Order Paper which seeks information about the communications unit which the Taoiseach has established.
The Deputy wants specific information that was not sought in the question. They Deputy knows how he can get the information he is seeking and should proceed to get it in the correct way.
(Interruptions.)
A Fine Fáil hack is running a Civil Service unit.
Will the Deputy resume his seat?
All the questions raised by Deputy De Rossa were answered by me in reply to Question No. 65 of 16 December 1997 — Official Report, columns 373-4.