Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 30 Jan 2002

Vol. 547 No. 1

Written Answers. - Departmental Expenditure.

Michael Ring

Ceist:

769 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the amount which was spent in his Department from June 1997 to December 2001 for media purposes and advertising; if he will categorise where the money was spent; the amount spent of a year to year basis; and the money which was spent on videos, whether for promotional, educational or advertising purposes. [2059/02]

Minister for the Environment and Local Government (Mr. Dempsey)

A total of 5,591,857, £4,403,945, was spent by my Department on advertising and media related activities from the end of June 1997 to December, 2001. A breakdown of this expenditure for each year in question is as follows:

Year	Expenditure
	(£)
1997 (June-Dec)	441,466 (347,683)
1998	457,802 (360,548)
1999	924,572 (728,160)
2000	1,787,887 (1,408,075)
2001	1,980,130 (1,559,479)

My Department has placed numerous advertisements since June, 1997, mainly on foot of statutory notification requirements. There has also been a range of advertising campaigns across the whole media spectrum over the period in question to highlight issues of relevance to my Department. The expenditure returns outlined above include a contribution of 1,270, £1,000, in 1998 towards an educational video and 20,316, £15,000, in 2001 towards a promotional video. The bulk of the increase in expenditure in recent years is due to the comprehensive multi-annual environmental awareness campaign initiated in 1999. The Department also funds the operations of ENFO – the environmental information service. ENFO provides an authoritative source of factual information on the environment and sustainable life styles. This is achieved,inter alia, through providing access to a drop-in centre, library, exhibitions, leaflets, CDs and videos.