Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 February 2019
81. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the breakdown of the €84,000 capital allocation under A public expenditure and sectoral policy division in Vote 11 of the budget 2019 expenditure report for 2019 by specific project; the projects that will be commenced in 2019; the projects that will be completed in 2019, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6000/19]
View answer82. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the breakdown of the €4,331,000 capital allocation under B public service management and reform in Vote 11 of the budget 2019 expenditure report for 2019 by specific project; the projects that will be commenced in 2019; the projects that will be completed in 2019, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6001/19]
View answer83. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the breakdown of the €587,000 capital allocation in the Office of Government Procurement for 2019, that is, Vote 39 of the budget 2019 expenditure report, by specific project; the projects that will be commenced in 2019; the projects that will be completed in 2019, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6002/19]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 81 to 83, inclusive, together.
The purpose of the capital investment undertaken by my Department, including the Office of Government Procurement (OGP), is to deliver greater effectiveness and efficiency across the Civil and Public Service, in the context of initiatives set out in reform plans such as Our Public Service 2020 and the Public Service ICT Strategy.
In 2019, Vote 11 (DPER) was allocated a capital investment budget of €4,415,000 and the main subheads investing this capital are the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) and Civil Service Learning and Development Programme (OneLearning).
The OGCIO takes the lead on driving forward the implementation of the Public Service ICT Strategy, working with Departments and agencies across the Public Service, and has been allocated a capital budget of €3,500,000 in 2019. Capital investment in 2019 has been allocated to the five strategic themes of the strategy which are Build to Share, Digital First, Data as an Enabler, Improve Governance, and Increase Capability. For instance, under the Build to Share pillar of the Strategy, the OGCIO continues to enhance the Government Network that has been in existence for many years. As a result of this investment, the Network will operate at higher speeds, providing high capacity services to the wider Public Service. The enhanced network will support agencies in the roll-out of new applications, new ways of working and engaging with the citizen.
The 2019 OGCIO capital budget has been allocated to these areas:
- Build To Share Common Applications (€1,250,000)
- Build to Share Desk Top Services (€1,400,000)
- Government Networks Development (€700,000)
- Strategic IT Development and Capability (€150,000)
The Civil Service Learning and Development subhead has been allocated €600,000 to complete the development of the Learning Management IT System in the first half of 2019. This is a key element of the Civil Service Renew Plan, as the system will provide a common platform for staff to access all of their learning and development requirements.
The Department also has a 2019 admin capital budget of €315,000 for routine ongoing investment in its own technology and premises.
In 2019, Vote 39 (Office of Government Procurement) has been allocated a capital budget of €587,000. This allocation is for a mixture of project based and routine ongoing capital spend. The OGP will invest €312,000 in its IT systems to deliver on its mandate to drive procurement savings to the State. The two IT projects that the OGP is continuing to invest in are the eTenders platform to support national and EU procurement requirements and a CRM / Workflow Management System is also being implemented to support OGP’s Customer Service function and sourcing activities of the OGP and its sector partners.
The OGP has a 2019 admin capital budget of €275,000 for routine ongoing investment in its own technology and premises.
