Written Answers Nos. 99-106
99. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the process of establishing a framework under which service providers provide a range of third party investigations and recipient service to public bodies seeking to meet their obligations under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20283/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraProcurement is a key element of the Government's Reform agenda. The Office of Government Procurement (OGP) was established to drive the reform agenda, adopt a strategic approach to public procurement, leverage the State's spending power and deliver savings for the State.
Framework agreements are one of a number of ways in which the OGP engages with the market to achieve value for money in the delivery of much-needed public goods and services. Framework agreements are established through competitive procurement processes and are agreements with suppliers or service providers which set out terms and conditions under which specific contracts can be made during the term of the agreement.
There is ongoing engagement between the OGP and our public sector clients so that the necessary contracts and frameworks are put in place to meet their requirements.
The OGP conducted a tender process to establish a Framework Agreement for Receipt and Investigation of Protected Disclosures. This framework includes service providers that can provide third party investigative and recipient services to public bodies seeking to meet their obligations under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014. The Framework Agreement was established in April this year and is comprised of three separate lots:
Lot 1 : Full Investigative Services into an alleged wrong-doing purported to be disclosed under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 including the review of such investigations;
Lot 2 : Full Investigative Services of allegations of penalisation or adverse treatment as a result of having made a disclosure of a wrongdoing purported to be made pursuant to the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 including the review of such investigations; and
Lot 3 : Provision of a third party Confidential Recipient service pursuant to section 6(2) of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014.
100. D'fhiafraigh Deputy Pearse Doherty den Aire Caiteachais Phoiblí agus Athchóirithe ós rud é, de réir an Achta um Chrannchur Náisiúnta, 1986 go mbíonn sciar de bhrabús an chrannchuir le caitheamh ar an nGaeilge agus ó díoladh ceadúnas an Chrannchuir Náisiúnta in 2013 an féidir leis an Aire a chur in iúl cé mhéad maoiniú a cuireadh ar fáil go bliantúil do Rialtas na hÉireann; agus an féidir leis an Aire a chur in iúl cé mhéad den mhaoiniú sin a cuireadh ar fáil go bliantúil don Ghaeilge agus cé na tionscadail a fuair an maoiniú sin. [20396/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraOne of the objectives relating to the sale of the National Lottery licence for a 20 year period was to generate significant up-front proceeds for the State. Proceeds of €405m from the sale were used to fund a range of expenditure projects and served to reduce the need for any further tax increases at that time.
The allocation of funding from subheads which are part-funded from the National Lottery is the responsibility of a number of Government Departments and Agencies. These Departments and Agencies are listed each year in Appendix 1 of the Revised Estimates for Public Services (REV).
The Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht publish on their Departmental website each year, information in respect of expenditure which was part-funded by the national lottery. Please see the relevant link attached. Subheads A9, B3 and C4 are described in the REV as ‘part-funded by the national lottery’ The information in respect of C4 relates directly to the Irish language.
https://www.chg.gov.ie/about/finance-evaluation/national-lottery-funding/
The specific link to the 2014 publication is as follows:
https://www.chg.gov.ie/app/uploads/2015/07/National_Lottery_Funding_2014.pdf
101. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if specific funding will be allocated to Cavan County Council in 2018 in respect of the essential repair of roads damaged by flooding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20416/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs recently outlined by the Minister for Transport, Tourism (PQ 17344/18) the improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of local authorities, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from the Council's own resources supplemented by State road grants. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for the local authority.
The 2018 regional and local road allocations (total €417m) were announced by the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport earlier this year and all grant funding available has now been allocated.
It is a matter for each Council to determine its priorities and decide its work programme on that basis, taking available grant funding and its own resources into account.
102. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the capital allocation across his Department in each of the years 2018 to 2022. [20455/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra103. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his Department's capital allocation for projects under way and projects already tendered or committed to spending contractually. [20472/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra104. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his Department's capital allocation in each of the years 2018 to 2022 disaggregated according to capital allocated to projects under way, projects contractually committed to and projects yet to be initiated. [20489/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 102 to 104, inclusive, together.
The purpose of capital investment undertaken by my Department and the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) is to deliver greater effectiveness and efficiency across the Civil and Public Service. The nature of many of the reform initiatives set out in ambitious reform plans, such as Our Public Service 2020 and the Public Service ICT Strategy, is that up-front investment is sometimes required to deliver service improvements and greater consolidation and efficiency across the Civil and Public Service in the medium and long term. Therefore, this can involve my Department taking on additional costs, including capital costs, in the short-term.
The Department’s capital allocation for the years 2018 to 2022 is set out in the following table:
|
Subhead and Vote |
2018 €m |
2019 €m |
2020 €m |
2021 €m |
2022 €m |
Total €m |
|
B.6 OGCIO |
3 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
23 |
|
B.10 CS Learning & Development/Other. |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
2 |
|
DPER Vote 11 (Total) |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
25 |
|
OGP Vote 39 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
5 |
|
Overall Departmental Total |
6 |
6 |
6 |
6 |
6 |
30 |
The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO), which is also part of my Department, invests and develops IT infrastructure on behalf of my Department, the Department of Finance, the National Shared Services Office and the OGP. However, its broader role is to leverage ICT to gain efficiencies and to improve the effectiveness of service delivery across the Civil and Public Service.
The OGCIO takes the lead on driving forward the implementation of the Public Service ICT Strategy, working with Departments and agencies across the Public Service. Capital investment in the period will be allocated to projects that support the five strategic themes of the strategy which are; Build to Share, Digital First, Data as an Enabler, Improve Governance, and Increase Capability. For instance, under the Build to Share pillar of the Strategy, the OGCIO continues to enhance the Government Network that has been in existence for many years. As a result of this investment, the Network will operate at higher speeds, providing high capacity services to the wider Public Service. The enhanced network will support agencies in the roll-out of new applications, new ways of working and engaging with the citizen.
The OGP continues to invest in its IT systems to deliver on its mandate to drive procurement savings to the State. For example, the OGP is continuing to invest in the eTenders platform to support national and EU procurement requirements. A CRM / Workflow Management System is also being implemented to support OGP’s Customer Service function and sourcing activities of the OGP and its sector partners.
105. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills his policy on the use of social media by primary schools; the steps he is taking to ensure that children whose parents do not wish their child to feature in the school's social media posts are not excluded from school activities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20237/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe use of social media by schools is a matter for the board of management of each individual school. My Department provides information to schools on the safe and ethical use of the internet generally and has a broad suite of policies to support the safe and appropriate use of digital technologies in schools. Schools are advised on the following matters; the development and implementation of an Acceptable Usage Policy (AUP) governing the use of internet in schools which can include reference to social media; the promotion or awareness regarding online safety; and the implementation of a content filtering/monitoring system.
A school’s policy in relation to the use of social media however should allow for parents to choose the context in which their child is to feature in the school’s social media posts without the child being excluded from school activities. Where parents have a concern in relation to a school's social media policy and participation in school activities, they should raise the matter with the board of management of the school concerned.
106. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills if there is a mechanism for the funding of a small theatre-style room in a national school which would be used by the school community for drama, music and other performances and also by the local community. [20241/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI wish to advise the Deputy that my Department’s current priority is the provision of essential classroom accommodation in areas where significant demographic need has been established to ensure that each child will have access to a physical school place.
Funding is not available for the purposes referred to by the Deputy. However in situations where a school has a GP room or access to a local community hall, activities of the nature described by the Deputy could be undertaken in these premises.
