Mr. Frank Kelly:

I will take that. My response was that the industry would seek to recover the costs. We have the discretionary framework with regard to inflation in costs. That is live and up and running. The process is still in the testing period but it is welcomed by the industry. Contractors will certainly be seeking recovery through that framework on public contracts. I would be concerned if those costs were not recoverable, whether in total or in part. We have had a lot of discussion here today on the particular issue of mica and individual houses. To some degree, we are looking at that issue through the small lens of a figure somewhere north of €2,000, depending on the particular house. My concern is about larger-scale projects, such as high-density residential projects, in which a lot of concrete is used. In some of these projects that involve basements, upwards of 25,000 or 30,000 cu. m might be used at €100 per cubic metre, which will now come with an additional cost of 5% along with two increases in September. It is a substantial increase and there are further increases to come. My concern is that, for the individual contractor who is under contract and trying to cover the existing increases, this further increase could have a significant impact. If those costs are recoverable through the public purse, it is ultimately the public purse paying, which raises an issue with regard to expenditure under the capital expenditure programme and the national development programme. We know that, in this inflationary market, some public projects are already being assessed for viability, which will affect whether they will go ahead or not. A lot of procuring authorities are holding back on tendering projects for that very reason.