Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 July 2018
75. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the expenditure on external consultant reports by his Department since May 2016; the name and cost of each report, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31906/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is responsible for two Votes - Vote 27 (International Co-operation) and Vote 28 (Foreign Affairs and Trade).
The Department seeks to minimise expenditure on consultants and commissions external expertise only in areas where highly specialised skills are not available within the Department and, in particular, where independent evaluation of programmes and projects is required. During the course of their engagement, these consultants and experts may prepare reports and other analysis or documentation for the Department.
In-depth analysis of issues by external experts has informed, and continues to inform, the Department’s policies, allowing for a more targeted use of resources and greater accountability in the allocation of budgets.
Some consultancies are engaged directly by Missions abroad, including to prepare technical reports relating to Ireland’s overseas development programme.
Certain reports commissioned by the Department are for internal management usage and not for publication. However, many Irish Aid-related reports are published on www.irishaid.ie.
Consultancy services are procured by competitive tendering processes in accordance with EU and national rules and comply with the overall value for money objectives of the Department. The expenditure is also subject to audit by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General.
I refer the Deputy to written parliamentary question 15201/18 responded to on 17 April 2018 which provided details of the amount of expenditure, extracted from the Department’s financial management system, in each of the years 2015 to 2017 including the name and number of consultants engaged. Details of relevant expenditure to date 2018, including ongoing consultancies, is provided in the following table.
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Expenditure on consultancy to date 2018
|
Year |
Total Amount of Expenditure (€) |
Number of Consultants |
Consultant |
|
2018 |
76,179 |
8 |
Brian Casey Niall Roche Julia Lewis Eleanor O’Gorman, Hannah Grene, Deirdre Clancy Muriel Visser Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham house) |
