James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The legislation does not need to be examined too closely because the evidence is before the committee and can be seen outside the local schools that are part of this contract. Subcontractors, who have done an honest day's work, are losing money hand over fist, having done their job. Some of them are going wallop, which has an impact on their families and employees as well as local businesses. The legislation has failed and I expect, at a minimum, a review to be carried out as quickly as possible to identify what amending legislation is needed. The big developers are walking away or going wallop, but money is being paid and the subcontractors are being crucified.

What is the motivation behind bundling five schools and one institute of education in a single contract? While this approach prices out local contractors and prevents them from bidding for these projects, these companies end up doing the work in any case. The irony is that the State wants to bundle projects into big contracts in the belief that only large international developers can do the work, yet the developers do not do the work but subcontract it instead to local contractors and subcontractors. Why are projects bundled on such a large scale?