Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
MINISTER FOR PUBLIC Expenditure and Reform Paschal Donohoe is to bring a memo to Cabinet on a new plan aimed at cutting the cost of storing paper records.
The archiving of records across all departments cost around €1.5 million for each of the last three years.
It’s understood that files and records for various government departments are stored in warehouses at off-site locations around the country.
The plan aims to reduce the spend on off-site storage for records and move to electronically storing data.
The National Archives Act 1986 requires public service records to be preserved. Such records cannot be destroyed except under certain circumstances, such as on receipt of a disposal authorisation issued by the National Archives.
Records built up over the years are moved out of the departments to off-site locations, but this can prove costly.
Of the various government departments, Social Protection pays out the most money on storing files, spending over €439,000 in 2016.
(Can’t see that chart, click here)
The minister said his new plan ”aims to assist coherent and comprehensive records management within the public service”.
Donohoe said the new initiative will ensure there is clarity in all departments on roles and responsibilities relating to record-keeping, data management, and information management.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Does Dobby own the warehouses, is the question.
@Dave Doyle: dobby? That the one of Harry Potter ? Why can’t they house them in the buildings they took from people (that bailed the banks to save their companies and ended up with nothing and the business failed and the offices or company taken away ) also I wonder is that their way of saying they need to put everything on a ” web cloud type space ” controlled by whomever and with that hitlerian public service card to anyone who hacks and any stalker can pull anyone’s record ??
Is that a preparing of the sheep to accept the card ha ? ” because of for their own good ”
At the same time the government exempt itself of ANY liabilities ( another new law) should your data get hacked , interesting all comes at same time …..
@WilhelminaMCallaghan: Dobby is he who cannot be named.
You very well might have some very relevant points there.
Governments are not to be trusted to have its citizens best interests at heart.
Would anyone be surprised if D.O.B owned the warehouses?
While a lot of the files could be transferred electronically, (and I’m sure we will love the costs of that)a lot of hard copy documentation has to be kept. It is the same for any office especially if there are legal requirements to do so.
Does anyone know how much some of the larger legal and accounting firms in the country spend in a year or even better how much other countries spend.
@Justin Cosgrove: It was reported that HSE escaped the recent hack attack on The NHS etc was because HSE hard copies of their files.
Hey,
I’ve some room in my shed. Could even collect!
Probably find that the Moriarty report is buried somewhere there.
Small change, keep the paper records and of course have a copy of them on a disk in case of fire?
Hello I am an Information and Records Manager. If you create and implement a national retention policy for records and make it law that no paper records can be deposited in state funded storage areas unless that are properly catalogued with a relevant retention schedule. The issue is the amount of time that it will take address records already in storage. In addition to this we do not have a Governmentally implemented Electronic Document and Records Management solution or the IT infrastructure to support it. It would be a mammoth project to implement but very worthwhile and also cost a lot of money to do correctly. The end result would be transparent records some that could be published once captured. Sometimes using private offsite document storage vendors are more cost effective than the government providing a suitable environment and staff.
Anyone got a match? That will save us €1.5m a year!
The shreding machine must be on the blink
Have they heard of the Cloud?
@Teresa Scanlon: I am sure they have , they spend most of their time up there…
@Dáithí Ó Raghallaigh: lol
@Teresa Scanlon: In this day and age, I would prefer paperwork than online storage. As anything and and can be hacked.
Is he bringing this memo on more paper or is he going all out and putting it on a USB
How much is spent storing the electronic voting machines that were never used?
Hello I am an Information and Records Manager. If you create and implement a national retention policy for records and make it law that no paper records can be deposited in state funded storage areas unless that are properly catalogued with a relevant retention schedule. The issue is the amount of time that it will take address records already in storage. In addition to this we do not have a Governmentally implemented Electronic Document and Records Management solution or the IT infrastructure to support it. It would be a mammoth project to implement but very worthwhile and also cost a lot of money to do correctly. The end result would be transparent records some that could be published once captured. Sometimes using private offsite document storage vendors are more cost effective than the government providing a suitable environment and staff.
have your say