Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 February 2026
66. D'fhiafraigh Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh den Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the steps that have been taken to reduce the IT programme spend within State departments and public bodies; agus an ndéanfaidh sé ráiteas ina thaobh. [10915/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraWhile the scale of ICT and digital investment is a matter for each Minister and their Accounting Officer, and can vary considerably across departments and public service bodies, my Department has put several mechanisms in place to help achieve best value for money for the State.
First, Circular 14/2021 directly addresses the steps that each department must take before starting a new ICT project. The Circular sets out Arrangements for Oversight of Digital and ICT-related Initiatives in the Civil and Public Service and is operated by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO), a division of my department. The Circular requires that Public Service Bodies seek approval for all new digital/ICT initiatives prior to any government decision, and the publication of any procurement documents, or otherwise committing to the project, including expenditure. Furthermore, specific approval of OGCIO is required where there is significant variation to the scope, schedule, deliverables, cost or quality since an original approval was conveyed by this Department. For projects with lifetime costs of over €5 million, the OGCIO manages a peer review process to ensure governance arrangements are robust and risks are managed.
Secondly, in addition to its oversight role, the OGCIO has developed a portfolio of shared ICT/digital services for use by Public Service Bodies. These include Government Networks, National Low Latency Platform, Managed Desktop, Government Private Cloud, Government Data Centre, the Enterprise Project Portfolio Management framework, Build to Share Applications suite and a range of digital building blocks which includes the gov.ie family of websites. Public service bodies are encouraged to avail of these services where these will meet their needs, and can reduce the total cost of, or the additional spend necessary to provide, a digital/ICT service. The Deputy will find more details on the range of services available from the OGCIO in my Department’s annual reports which are published on gov.ie
