Vol. 500 No. 7
399 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Education and Science the way in which the contract for printing the junior and leaving certificate examination papers is granted; the companies which received the contract for each of the years from 1996 to 1998; and if the contract for 1999 has been awarded. [5077/99]
400 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Education and Science if there is an requirement to open up the tendering for the printing of the junior and leaving certificate examination papers to companies outside the Republic of Ireland; and, if so, the terms of this requirement. [5078/99]
401 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Education and Science if it is his Department's policy, where possible, to use the services of companies based in the Republic of Ireland. [5079/99]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 399 to 401, inclusive, together.
In dealing with public contracts for the confidential printing of examination question papers my Department's policy is to obtain the services of reputable and reliable firms in the context of fair commercial competition with the objective of obtaining full value for public funds.
The tender for the confidential printing of the examination papers each year is competitive and my Department receives tenders from outside Ireland in this regard. This approach is in accordance with the fact that we are operating in the Single European Market which brings considerable benefits to this country by giving access to EU markets for Irish companies and opens our markets to our EU partners in the reciprocal arrangements that apply.
While I am not at liberty, for security and commercial reasons, to divulge details of the companies that were awarded the confidential printing contracts, I can confirm that in 1996 all examination question papers were printed in Ireland; in 1997 the majority were printed in Ireland with the balance undertaken by a company outside Ireland; in 1998 all were printed in Ireland; and in 1999 the majority will be printed in Ireland with the balance being printed by a company outside Ireland.
