Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 22 January 2025
1251. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his views on whether the Tusla Child and Family Agency has not being compliant with EU public procurement law and Irish public procurement guidelines with regard to money being spent by it on the purchase of services for children and for adults in need who are under their care; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1464/25]
View answer1252. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will give a narrative statement showing whether all public service contracts providing care for children and separately adults with needs in Tusla’s care have been compliant with public procurement laws since 1 January 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1465/25]
View answer1253. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the date, and number of, contracts awarded to provide care for children and adults with needs, respectively, for Tusla; the value of each contract; the identity of the persons the contracts were awarded to as if complying with EU law; if he will he take measures to insist that Tusla and its officials comply with the duties to publish public contract notices and public contract award notices in e-Tender and the Official Journal of the European Union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1466/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1251, 1252 and 1253 together.
Thank you Deputy for your question relating to procurement processes by Tusla.
I have made contact with Tusla, the Child and Family Agency and Tusla has informed me that they have procedures in place to ensure compliance with current procurement rules and guidelines. The services provided by Tusla to meet increasingly complex demands relating to at risk children and families, result in more complex procurement and contracting for these services than for less complex service areas.
Tusla has made improvements to their procurement processes over the past number of years.
Each year Tusla presents as part of its Annual Report and Financial Statements, audited by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, on the extent of non-compliant contracts that were entered into without a competition in line with Dept. of Finance 40/02 Circular. For 2023 Tusla reported €4.8m of non-compliant contracts down from €5.4m for 2022. For context, Tusla spent over €1 billion in 2022 and 2023.
I have asked Tusla to send a list of those contracts to the Deputy under separate cover.
