Written Answers Nos. 367 - 378
367. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will address concerns within the construction sector in relation to the procurement of public contracts due to unfair competition from non-resident contractors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4444/17]
View answerPublic procurement is the acquisition, whether under formal contract or not, of works, supplies and services by public bodies. National rules governing public procurement must comply with the relevant EU, WTO and national legal requirements and obligations. Under EU law, public contracts above a certain value must be advertised EU-wide and awarded to the most competitive tender in an open and objective process. The aim of European and national rules is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime which delivers best value for money. It would be a breach of the rules for a public body to favour or discriminate against particular candidates on grounds of location or nationality and there are legal remedies which may be used against any public body infringing these rules.
Public procurement procedures require applicants to meet certain standards when applying for public contracts. In this regard applicants are required to make declarations in relation to their financial standing, their legal standing and in relation to payment of taxes and social contributions.
Prior to the award of a public works contract, the successful applicant is also required to produce a current Tax Clearance Certificate from the Revenue Commissioners. Under our national rules, any non-resident contractor being awarded a public contract must provide a Tax Clearance Certificate issued by Revenue confirming that the firm's tax affairs are in order and that it has complied with its tax obligations in this jurisdiction. Additional information in relation to tax requirements for non-resident contractors can be obtained at www.revenue.ie.
The management of the tendering process for a public contract is a matter for each contracting authority. It is the responsibility of each contracting authority to ensure that tenderers comply with all the requirements of the process.
Once awarded, the conditions of the public works contracts require the contractor to certify compliance with employment law, to maintain records of all those employed on the site, regardless of whether they are employees of the contractor or their subcontractors, and the hours worked by them. Where requested, the contractor must also provide details of the payments made to those employed on the site.
Where the contractor fails to comply with their obligations under the contract or employment law, deductions may be made from payments due under the contract until the situation is rectified.
Enforcement of tax, social welfare and employment law are matters for the relevant State authorities.
368. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the sluice gates in a canal (details supplied) in County Kerry will be repaired or replaced to prevent flooding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3766/17]
View answerThe Office of Public Works (OPW) has maintenance responsibility only for those Catchment Drainage Schemes and Flood Relief Schemes completed by the OPW under the Arterial Drainage Acts 1945 and 1995.
The location referred to by the Deputy does not form part of any OPW maintained arterial drainage scheme and, as such, this Office has no responsibility for its maintenance.
Local flooding issues are a matter, in the first instance, for each Local Authority to investigate and address, and Kerry County Council may carry out flood mitigation works using its own resources.
The Office of Public Works operates a Minor Flood Mitigation Works and Coastal Protection Scheme. This administrative Scheme's eligibility criteria, including a requirement that any measures are cost beneficial, are published on the OPW website at http://www.opw.ie. It is open to Kerry County Council to submit a funding application under this Scheme. Any application received will be considered in accordance with the overall availability of resources for flood risk management and the scheme's eligibility criteria, available on the OPW website.
369. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the status of a revised application regarding the construction of a retaining wall (details supplied); when a decision can be expected on same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3775/17]
View answerI am advised that the property owners in this case arranged themselves to have a wall with flood gates built around their property. The Office of Public Works Minor Flood Mitigation and Coastal Protection Scheme is available to fund local authorities only to carry out eligible works themselves in compliance with all regulatory requirements. It is not a grant scheme for individual property owners. In these circumstances this Minor Works application is effectively invalid.
370. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the number of staff under the aegis of his Department in the clerical officer, staff officer or equivalent grade; the Government Departments that are currently part of the payroll shared service centre, PSSC; the Departments which are not currently part of the PSSC; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3813/17]
View answerIn reply to the Deputy's question, the following table outlines the number of Clerical Officers and Staff Officers in my Department and in the bodies under its aegis:
|
- |
Clerical Officers |
Staff Officers |
|
Department of Public Expenditure and Reform |
512 |
31 |
|
Public Appointments Service |
68* |
13 |
|
The State Laboratory |
7 |
2 |
|
The Office of the Ombudsman |
26 |
0 |
|
Institute of Public Administration |
21 |
0 |
|
Special EU Programmes Body |
9 |
8 |
* This figure includes 10 temporary clerical officers
The Office of Public Works will respond directly to the Deputy within the next ten days.
The Payroll Shared Service Centre (PSSC) was established in December 2013 and is part of the National Shared Services Office. Since its establishment, the following Departments have transferred to the PSSC:
- Department of An Taoiseach;
- Department of Finance;
- Department of Public Expenditure and Reform;
- Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government;
- Department of Defence (pensions);
- Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade;
- Department of Justice and Equality;
- Department of Education and Skills;
- Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine;
- Department of Health;
- Department of Children and Youth Affairs;
- Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment;
- Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport; and
- Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs
The other Public Service Bodies who have transferred to the PSSC since 2013 are An Garda Síochána; the Irish Prison Service; the Office of the Revenue Commissioners; the Office of the Attorney General; the Central Statistics Office; the President's Establishment; Child Detention Schools; Health Information and Quality Authority; National Council for Curriculum and Assessment; National Disability Authority; Civil Service Redress Board; Law Reform Commission; State Examinations Commission; Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission; Courts Service; Chief State Solicitor's Office; Office of the Ombudsman; Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions; Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General; National Museum; National Library; Property Registration Authority; Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission; National Council for Special Education; Public Appointments Service; and State Laboratory.
The Government Departments that have still to be transferred to the Payroll Shared Services Centre are the Department of Social Protection; the Department of Defence (Military payrolls); and the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. Other Public Service Bodies that have still to be transferred are the Office of Public Works; the Houses of the Oireachtas; and the Valuation Office.
The following deferred reply was received under Standing Order 42A.
I refer to Parliamentary Question No. 370 on the Dáil Order Paper of 31st January 2017 (Ref. 3813/17) requesting details of the numbers of staff in the Clerical Officer, Staff Officer and equivalent grades employed in Government Departments/Offices.
The staff numbers for this Office are set out in the table.
|
Clerical Officer |
Staff Officers |
|
125 |
19 |
371. Deputy Ciarán Cannon asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the position regarding the return of the Turoe stone to Turoe, County Galway; and the timeframe for same. [3835/17]
View answerWork to conserve the Turoe Stone has been successfully completed and the artefact is in safe storage at the Office of Public Works premises at Portumna pending its return to the site at Loughrea where it will be housed in a specially designed environmental shelter. It has been decided to locate the shelter within the existing carpark area at the site and to provide suitable landscaping to surround it.
The general siting and landscaping has been determined and OPW is advancing the design of the customised shelter. A firm, which has provided appropriate and similar expertise at the recently completed Cormac’s Chapel project at the Rock of Cashel, has been procured to provide specialised consultancy services and an Architectural practice to lead the project is being appointed. The project will require Planning Permission.
372. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the reason the proposed amalgamation by his Department of the staff officer and executive officer grades within the Civil Service did not take place on 2 January 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3980/17]
View answerThe matter of the amalgamation of the Civil Service Staff Officer grade with the Executive Officer grade is currently under deliberation between the management and union side parties concerned. As this deliberative process has yet to be concluded it is considered that it would not be appropriate in the circumstances to comment on any issues that may arise between the parties concerned.
373. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to similarly advance the payment date for retired public servants, in view of the advancing of the date for the next payment of pay restoration for public servants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4045/17]
View answerFollowing the Labour Court Recommendations on Garda pay in November 2016, discussions between the Government and the Public Services Committee of ICTU under section 6 of the Lansdowne Road Agreement concluded with agreement to an increase of €1,000 in annualised salaries for the period 1 April 2017 to 31 August 2017 inclusive for:
public servants on annualised basic salaries up to €65,000;
who are parties to the Lansdowne Road Agreement; and
who do not stand to benefit from the Labour Court Recommendations.
The increase was agreed to address the pay anomaly arising from the Labour Court Recommendations accepted by the Government in resolution of the pay dispute with the Garda Associations. The terms of that settlement have not impacted on pensions in payment and the current increase of €1,000 for the period 1 April to 31 August 2017 on annualised basic salaries up to €65,000 will not impact on pensions in payment also.
Reductions to public service pensions which took place by way of the Public Service Pension Reduction (PSPR) under the financial emergency legislation are being significantly reversed. This is happening in three stages under FEMPI 2015, with PSPR-affected pensioners getting pension increases via substantial restoration of the PSPR reductions on 1 January 2016, 1 January 2017 and 1 January 2018. As I have previously indicated, it will be for Government in due course to consider the issue of how to adjust the post-award value of public service pensions through appropriate pay or other linkages, as we move beyond FEMPI and PSPR restoration towards more normal pay and pension setting conditions in the public service.
374. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if a chair has been appointed to the community sector high level forum or working group which comprises public service management and union interest, which was reconvened in the last quarter of 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4143/17]
View answerA new Chair has recently been appointed to the High Level Working Group Forum on the community sector. A meeting is accordingly being arranged between the parties concerned with a view to scheduling a date in the first quarter of 2017.
375. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the funding drawn down by the State to date under the Juncker plan, by project, in tabular form; the date the spending of the funding began; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4499/17]
View answerI presume the Deputy's question relates to funding provided under the European Fund for Strategic Investments, or EFSI, which is the joint initiative of the EIB Group and the European Commission aimed at mobilising private financing for strategic investments, mainly through loan funding. In Ireland's case, the main potential beneficiaries of EFSI are likely to be commercial investment projects (including PPPs). There is little or no scope to use EFSI to increases public capital investment due to the need to continue to comply with the requirements of the Stability and Growth Pact. The Deputy may wish to note that my Department is not the lead Department in relation to EFSI, nor has my Department responsibility for coordinating applications for funding under EFSI or for reporting on lending by EFSI or EIB to Ireland. However, I understand information on projects approved by EFSI, by country, is available on the website of the EIB at http://www.eib.org/efsi/efsi-projects/index.htm.
376. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to amalgamate the grades of staff officer and executive officer; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4501/17]
View answerThe matter of the amalgamation of the Civil Service Staff Officer grade with the Executive Officer grade is currently under deliberation between the management and union side parties concerned. As this deliberative process has yet to be concluded it is considered that it would not be appropriate in the circumstances to comment on any issues that may arise between the parties concerned.
377. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the proposals there are to upgrade existing State accommodation at a location (details supplied); if he will ensure the necessary improvement works will be undertaken at an early date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4622/17]
View answerThe Office of Public Works responds to requests for building works by An Garda Síochána on foot of priorities submitted by it. OPW has not received any such request for works to Cootehill Garda station.
378. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Government will be making available to local authorities additional funding in order to meet the now earlier than expected pay restoration proposals for the public sector employees ahead of the now earlier than previously planned pay restoration which will occur in April 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4624/17]
View answerI refer the Deputy to my answer to Parliamentary No. 7 of 26 January 2017.
