Vol. 414 No. 1
111 Mrs. Fennell asked the Minister for Education if he will outline in respect of his Department (1) the number of Government contracts which are in force, (2) whether all contracts are renewed each year and (3) if all contracts are granted as a result of tendering to the most competitive estimate.
A total of 127 contracts entered into by my Department are currently in force for a range of goods and services, including consultancy, cleaning, supply and maintenance of office and information technology equipment, examination materials and capital building works.
The majority of these contracts are not renewable; a small number are renewed each year as required.
Standard Government contract procedures are followed in all cases, including the provision for competitive tendering where appropriate. Competitive tendering is not always appropriate in the case of equipment maintenance contracts as the service may only be obtainable from the original supplier.
