Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 5 March 2014
81. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the reason the State does not publish the result of all public contract tenders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11122/14]
View answerUnder the EU Directives on public procurement works, supplies and services the results of all public contract tenders above certain thresholds must be advertised in the Official Journal of the EU and awarded on the basis of objective and non-restrictive criteria. For works contracts the current threshold is €5.186 million; for supplies and service contracts awarded by Government Departments the current threshold is €134,000 and for the remainder of public bodies the current threshold is €207,000. The current threshold for supplies and service contracts of entities operating in utility sectors (water, energy, transport and postal) is €414,000. The aim of these rules is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime which delivers best value for money.
I understand that approximately two thirds of tenders which are above these EU thresholds have contract award notices published for them. The reason for this level of publication is that of the remaining tenders some may never be awarded or the tender competition may be cancelled. It is the responsibility of individual contracting authorities to publish award notices following the signing of a contract. This process is facilitated through the national eProcurement portal www.etenders.gov.ie.
The Office of Government Procurement (OGP) is responsible for producing annual statistical information in relation to above-EU threshold procurement activity by the Irish public sector and for providing these statistics to the European Commission. The most recent data available on above EU threshold awards relates to 2011 and is as follows: Approximately 10% (valued at €240M) of the contracts awarded above EU thresholds in this State went to non-domestic companies. This represents less than 5% of the overall annual public procurement spend (approximately €13.1 billion).
Whilst contracting Authorities are not required to publish the results of tender competitions, under EU thresholds, they are required to advertise all procurement opportunities above €25,000 for supplies and services and €50,000 for works on www.etenders.gov.ie. Furthermore, guidance (Guidelines for a Competitive Process) issued by my Department to contracting authorities outlines best practice in relation to informing tenders of the outcome of each procurement process. This states that contracting authorities should provide unsuccessful tenderers with as much useful feedback as possible to enable them to have a better footing in future competitive processes.
