Wednesday, 1 Feb 2023

Written Answers Nos. 1-36

Gender Equality

Ceisteanna (15)

Ivana Bacik

Ceist:

15. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Taoiseach to report on the gender pay gap report from his Department. [3343/23]

Freagraí scríofa

The Taoiseach

The 2022 Gender Pay Gap Report for the Department of the Taoiseach was published on 23 December 2022. The report sets out the gender pay gap statistics incorporating 240 staff employed during the reporting period June 2021 to June 2022.

The information in the report was calculated in accordance with the principles laid out in the Gender Pay Gap Information Act 2021, which requires organisations to report on their gender pay gap, that is, the difference in the average hourly wage of men and women across the workforce.

For 2022, the Department’s gender pay gap is 8.82% in favour of male employees. This means that the average hourly rate of pay for male employees was 8.82% higher than the average hourly rate for female employees during the relevant pay period.

Publishing the Department’s gender pay gap data helps the Department to bring a specific focus on gender diversity and to continue the alignment of our actions for improvement in gender equality as part of the broader work to enhance equality, diversity and inclusion across the Department.

Questions Nos. 16 to 34, inclusive, resubmitted.

Question No. 35 answered orally.

Departmental Advertising

Ceisteanna (36)

Peadar Tóibín

Ceist:

36. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Taoiseach the amount spent by his Department on online advertising in each of the past ten years and to date in 2023, in tabular form; and if he will provide details in relation to this spending. [4860/23]

Freagraí scríofa

The Taoiseach

The table below details expenditure by my Department on online advertising from 2013 to the 31st of January 2023.

2013	Nil
2014	Nil
2015	€492
2016	Nil
2017	Nil
2018	€436,823
2019	€12,281
2020	€1,451,433
2021	€1,092,363
2022	€256,143
January 2023	Nil

The bulk of the spend from 2020-2022 relates to the dissemination of information related to the COVID-19 emergency. As part of the Government's coordinated approach to public health communications, there were 70 COVID-19 public information campaigns. The online advertising expenditure related to banner advertisements on websites, Google search promotion and advertising on a range of social media platforms - Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Tiktok, Snapchat and Youtube.