Mr. John McKeon:

The issue is not who does the work. The issue is whether the work is being done. If I am a jobseeker, the issue is whether I have someone I can meet who will give me advice and support in job searching. Whether that person is employed by the State directly or indirectly through local employment services, which are also private companies, or by a commercial private company is, to a certain extent, less important than whether the person is qualified, knows what they are doing and can help me get a job. We are within the European Union and there are public procurement rules. We have to go to tender for this type of work and it is a very rigorous procurement process. There were independent members on the assessment panel for tenders. That is the process we had to go through. We work with whoever comes through that process.