More than €1.1m in taxpayer funds was paid last year to ministers, TDs, and Senators for social media providers, communications, and secretarial support.
The payments were made as part of the little-known special secretarial allowance which allows part-time hiring and the purchase of public relations services.
In 2024, Taoiseach Micheál Martin paid €5,965 to a firm called Upload Media, a creative media agency based in Dublin.
On their website, they offer a range of services including video production, photography, graphic design, web design, and content management.
Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers paid €5,000 to Communique International, a strategic communications provider.
The former minister Simon Coveney spent just over €40,500 with the Cork-based firm Cameo Communications.
Current Enterprise Minister Peter Burke paid Social Media Elite just over €5,500 while ex-Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue submitted a bill of €4,920 from Fabrik Creative Media.
Minister Norma Foley paid around €4,100 to Fogarty Films as well as €1,000 to Yewtree Infotainment.
Details of a further payment of €1,000 were redacted from the records on the basis it was personal information.
The Oireachtas has adopted a policy of only providing details of spending where companies are involved and not for individuals or sole traders.
That meant no further detail was provided on payments totalling €42,700 on behalf of the Fianna Fáil TD and Minister of State Niall Collins.
Similarly, €14,700 in payments by Minister Hildegarde Naughton were anonymised as were €26,500 in payments under the scheme by Culture Minister Patrick O'Donovan.
Details of nearly €11,700 spending by former Minister Anne Rabbitte were redacted as well along with €7,300 in bills from Minister Thomas Byrne.
The scheme also allows TDs and Senators to hire a temporary vouched employee to work in their offices.
It can be used to temporarily fill positions rather than taking somebody on full-time.
Spending by TDs in that category came to €937,725 last year with payments from Tánaiste Simon Harris coming to €44,319.
Others who made use of the scheme in that way were Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (€37,545 in costs) and Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe (€40,149 in costs).
Overall, the Oireachtas said the special secretarial allowance had cost €1.137m in 2024.
An information note said: "The purpose of the secretarial allowance is to assist towards expenses arising from the purchase of certain secretarial assistance, public relations, information technology (but not web related) and training services".
"The allowance may also be used for remuneration of persons providing secretarial services i.e. temporary vouched employees," the noted added.
Reporting by Ken Foxe
