The UK’s recent Guidance on Contract Payment Information is underpinned by Section 70 of the Procurement Act 2023. As the Deputy is aware, the Department is carrying out several reforms to ensure that all public officials have comprehensive guides based on expenditure management and accountability legislation to assist them in delivering public services efficiently and effectively.
Our main objective is to have transparency and tighter controls over Public Spending, and for procurement to be viewed and aligned, in the context of a tool for expenditure management and the Public Financial Procedures review.
A review of the public procurement process to make it more transparent is a priority for Minister Chambers and I, which is why we tasked our officials with drafting the national public procurement strategy which Minister Chambers will bring to Cabinet shortly.
Safeguarding Public Trust is a key pillar of this strategy, with a focus on using digital tools to enhance data capture and verification.
This work will be guided by the legislative reforms being prioritised at EU level in response to the Draghi report and the Letta report, which includes the revision of the Public Procurement Directives. Any policy considerations regarding legislation need to await the outcome of this regulatory review.
Notwithstanding the work at the EU level, all policy considerations must also support thewww.gov.ie/en/department-of-public-expenditure-infrastructure-public-service-reform-and-digitalisation/publications/accelerating-infrastructure-report-and-action-plan/ and the desired outcomes to remove obstacles, foster a culture of delivery, and regulatory changes to simplify and streamline Government procurement for the range of goods and services – from small but impactful procurement, as well as major infrastructure.
As the Deputy also knows, procurement is devolved across the 7,000 public authorities in Ireland, and each has their own approach to following the rules. This is why the guidance my officials develop is critical to assist public buyers. Transparency and value for money are key priorities in the Strategy, and over the lifetime of the Strategy, 2026 to 2030, officials will work to consider and implement guardrails for public expenditure, through revised Guidelines for Goods and Services.
To complement the Strategy my department is working to implement the vision in https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/1faeacaa/Public_Procurement_in_Ireland_-_A_roadmap_for_digital_development.pdf to support a number of priority outcomes in public procurement including increased efficiency and improved data generation and collection throughout all the stages of the procurement process.
Through initiatives like the Capital Works Management Framework and digital tools such as Building Information Modelling (BIM), we are setting higher standards and ensuring transparency in how major projects are delivered.
