286. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Finance the number of mobile phones issued to staff in 2022, 2023 and to date in 2024; and the total costs expended by his Department on handsets and phones bills over the same timeframe. [44860/24]

I have been advised by the Office of Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO), that the number of mobile phones issued to staff within my department for the years 2022, 2023 and 2024 to date is as follows:

The total cost incurred by my department for mobile devices and phone bills in 2022, 2023, and 2024 to date is as follows:

I wish to advise the Deputy that:

• the figures for 2024 are inclusive up to end of October 2024.

• in some cases handset costs are amortised over the course of a number of months, as part of a package on the mobile phone bill.  As such the cost of these handsets will appear under the heading: total cost of phone bills, rather than under the heading total cost of handsets .