Horse Racing Industry

Tuesday, 9 April 2024

Questions (1009)

Michael Fitzmaurice

Question:

1009. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 158 of 6 March 2024, if, given that no reasons were provided, he will now provide the reasons for awarding an approximate €4 million marketing contract to an organisation with no marketing staff, no website, no social media presence and no history of marketing experience at the time of the award; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14818/24]

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Written answers

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The contract for the provision of Marketing Services to the sport horse sector was awarded to the Irish Horse Board following a competitive tendering process carried out by my Department in accordance with Public Procurement Guidelines.

The Request for Tender (RFT) provided details of the award criteria and each tender was evaluated based on the information supplied. The contract was awarded on the basis of the tender meeting the specified criteria in the RFT and being deemed the most economically advantageous tender.