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

No. We make projects and tenders available to companies that are able to deliver them at the best value. Value has two different elements, namely, price and the quality of the work done. If it turned out, when procurement processes are reviewed, that an organisation made a project available to a company that was not the cheapest bidder, questions would be raised about whether we could have secured the project at a lower price. For that reason, if a firm offers a lower tender price for a project the probability is that it will secure that project. However, when Departments are making final decisions on matters they take account of other factors apart from the exact price.