Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I did not say at any point that it is not of concern to me. I am challenging the Senator's language. She should bear in mind that Irish companies will be going abroad looking for new business in the context of what is unfolding in the UK. I would have thought she could appreciate the need to be sensitive to the fact that we have Irish companies tendering for international business at the moment. If we are going to talk about the application of law, it is the application of law that applies equally to all companies.

As for the tendering process, the Senator is right that there are certain forms of information and certain parts of contracts that are not revealed publicly. The reason is that we are involved in multiple tendering processes every day of the week. If we begin to indicate to people involved in those processes what prices we are gaining for the supply of services, we will undermine our ability to deliver good value for the taxpayer. Any information that has been shared or stored, regardless of whether it is by an international company, is subject to Irish law regarding how that information is looked after. Notwithstanding concerns the Senator may have and while it is great to hear she is clearly engaging with what is very important legislation, the Bill we are looking to bring through is about how we can better regulate the sharing of information better between public service bodies.