Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 27 January 2021
271. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the budgetary analysis being carried out in his Department and each State agency under the remit of his Department to plan for the impact of long Covid-19 impacts, in tabular form. [4492/21]
View answerI note that the Deputy has submitted this question to all Departments and that each Minister will be replying in respect of their own Department and the bodies under their aegis.
As a result of its business continuity plans, investment in (and effective use of) technology and the commitment of its staff, the work of my Department has been able to continue since the pandemic began. This has involved large scale remote working by the staff of the Department. In this context, I am pleased that the Department, including the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) and the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO), has been able to execute its duties and deliver its public goods, albeit in some cases in a different manner to other years. Furthermore, the Deputy may wish to note that the OGCIO has numerous client organisations across Government for whom it has been able to use its own voted financial resources and knowledge to enable them to deliver their public goods as normal by facilitating remote working on a large scale.
Looking to the future, my Department and the aforementioned two Offices therein expect to be able to continue to operate as normally as possible in 2021 and that any additional costs associated with the pandemic will be managed within the Department’s voted allocation without affecting its operations. This position will be kept under ongoing review in respect of future years.
The position of the bodies under the aegis of the Department is set out in the table at the following link.
