140. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will provide in tabular form the total photography costs for his Department since coming to office, inclusive of costs incurred from use of the ministerial allowance; the list of occasions for which photographers were booked; the photographers used; the breakdown of costs associated with each occasion on which a photographer was used; if there is a policy regarding the booking of photographers within his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29103/14]

My Department only avails of the services of external photographic agencies where it is warranted, in particular, for major events and State occasions. This is a service which my Department provides so that the media can easily and freely avail of photography where their own staff photographers cannot be fully accommodated. There was a significant number of such events in the period in question, including the State Visit of Queen Elizabeth II, the visit by President Obama and the Irish Chairmanship of the OSCE, all of which resulted in very positive international coverage of Ireland. In the case of Ireland's Presidency of the EU, there was a demand for photography which would not routinely apply.

In September 2011, my Department led a collaborative advertised tender process for the procurement of a multi-supplier competitive framework of photographic service providers. This is now available for use by all Government Departments. Details of the new framework arrangements and the photographers used are posted on the National Procurement Service website: www.procurement.ie/suppliers/contracts/1298. The purpose of this framework is to ensure Departments' compliance with EU procurement rules and to ensure value for money by having a competitive process for photographic assignments. In addition, my Department now makes greater use of in-house resources for photography.

The total cost of photography to my Department over the period in question is €124,647.67. The following table indicates the cost associated with particular events.

*It was not possible to provide a full breakdown in the time available.