Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 4 Dec 1991

Vol. 414 No. 1

Written Answers. - Government Contracts.

Nuala Fennell

Ceist:

83 Mrs. Fennell asked the Minister for Labour 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.

Minister for Labour (Mr. O'Kennedy)

The number of contracts currently in force in my Department is 41.

A total of 36 contracts are renewed annually, three contracts are currently running for a two year duration and two contracts for a three year duration.

Where possible, contracts are granted as a result of competitive tendering. Competitive tendering is not possible in all cases, however, such as maintenance contracts relating to computer applications where technical support is only provided by specific suppliers. Maintenance contracts for office machinery are awarded to the supplier of the original equipment where no other supplier is in a position to provide spare parts etc.

Nuala Fennell

Ceist:

84 Mrs. Fennell asked the Minister for Energy 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.

Minister for Energy (Mr. Molloy)

There are at present 45 Government contracts in place in this Department.

By their nature, not all contracts are renewed each year as most of them relate to specific short term tasks or projects where renewal on an annual basis does not arise. Some contracts are, to a degree, open ended but with termination provisions which may be invoked by either party.

Established Government contract procedures are complied with in all cases. In general, contracts are awarded as a result of a competitive process. In some cases, formal tendering procedures are neither necessary nor appropriate. However, in all cases, contracts are awarded to the most economically advantageous tender based on competitiveness, expertise most appropriate to the task and value for money.