Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 July 2018
1462. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Health the amount paid by his Department for consultancy services from 2012 to 2017; the details of the payment; the companies that received same; the amount received by each company; the hourly rates that applied to each company; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32989/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraIt is the policy of my Department only to engage the services of external consultants where highly specialised skills are not available within the Department and, in particular, when such an approach is more cost effective.
These services are procured by open competitive tendering processes in accordance with EU and national rules and comply with the overall value for money objective of the Department.
Expenditure on the engagement of consultants is paid out of the Departments A7 budget and this year represents around 0.01% of the Health Vote.
The tables in the following link outline the total amount spent on external consultants by my Department from 2012 to 2017.
While some contracts are negotiated on the basis of a daily or hourly rate, others are paid a fee on the basis of reaching of a number of milestones during the process and in some case producing a report.
