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Consultancy Contracts Data

Dáil Éireann Debate, Friday - 6 September 2019

Friday, 6 September 2019

Questions (35)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

35. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the names of external consultancies that delivered and continue to deliver advice and training on all aspects of GDPR in the context of preparedness and ongoing upskilling of staff regarding the regulation; the cost expended on the external advice and training of same to date in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35577/19]

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Written answers

Preparation and planning for the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) intensified in my Department in 2016 with the appointment of a Data Protection Officer (DPO), as required by the GDPR. My Department’s policy is that its DPO be a certified Data Protection Practitioner.

As part of the Department’s preparations, ahead of the coming into force of the GDPR, the DPO delivered a series of tailored training programmes for key staff at home and abroad. Since the GDPR came into force in May 2018, my Department has continued to upskill and train staff on the GDPR on an ongoing basis. As a result, there is considerable internal expertise on data protection, so that our reliance on external consultancies to provide advice and training on GDPR is modest.

The following table sets out the names of the external service providers that delivered and/or continue to deliver advice and training on all aspects of the GDPR as well as the cost associated with each one.

Consultancy

Expenditure

PDP Training (2016-present) – including certification of current and former DPO as Data Protection Practitioners

€6,504.50

PDP GDPR/DP Conferences 2016, 2017 & 2018

€5,771.00

Public Affairs Ireland 2016, 2017 & 2018

€4,860.00

Institute of Public Administration 2018

€405.00

ICS Skills 2018

€1,750.00

Sytorus (Data Protection Specialists) 2018

€2,300.00

CMG Professional Training 2018 & 2019

€1,580.00

The Honorable Society of Kings Inns (2018-2019) - Deputy DPO completed Advanced Diploma in Data Protection Law

€2,350.00

Compliance with the GDPR is an ongoing obligation. In the coming year, my Department intends to roll out a suite of e-learning training modules to cover HQ and our missions abroad. This aligns with the Department’s commitment to ongoing professional development and upskilling for staff, and the People Strategy for the Civil Service 2017-2020.

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