Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 5 December 2023
460. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the total budgeted cost of the television and radio advertising campaign in relation to the new Decision Support Service; the total amount spent in each year to date; and the total amount which was paid to RTÉ in each year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53322/23]
View answerUnder the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, as amended, the Director of the Decision Support Service (DSS) has, amongst others, an assigned function:
"to promote public awareness of this Act and matters (including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities done at New York on 13 December 2006) relating to the exercise of their capacity by persons who require or may shortly require assistance in exercising their capacity"
This was a particularly important obligation in 2023 given the launch this year of the DSS and the fact that members of the public would, for the first time, have the opportunity to avail of the new system of decision supports.
The total allocated budget for the Decision Support Service public information campaign 2023 (which was part-formed by TV and radio advertising) was €949,000. There was no separate advertising campaign prior to 2023, as the relevant legislation had not been commenced.
While not in a position to comment on specific contractual matters due to the commercially sensitive nature of the information, actual expenditure on the campaign in 2023 to date is approx. €500,000. Of that total, the spend on TV and radio advertising to date is approx. €227,000.
The Decision Support Service (DSS), which is the organisation that will operate the provisions of the 2015 Act, is charged with responding to the complex decision-making needs of people with capacity difficulties.
The DSS plays a crucial role in ensuring that the different tiers of support under the Act are available to those who need them, and also holds a supervisory and safeguarding role in relation to those arrangements.
