John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

It has to do with a subcontractor who was in agreement with a prime contractor to do some building works in University College Cork. To make a long story short, the subcontractor is caught between the prime contractor and UCC. They are in a situation where they are owed well over €100,000. UCC has said it will not pay the money in that it is bound by the contract it had with the prime contractor. The reason I am raising it here is that it really does bring up an issue. We have updated prompt payment legislation in the Oireachtas over the past three or four years. I am not sure if it is operating or functioning yet but there has been legislation dealing with subcontractors being paid by the State within a certain period of time. It runs contrary to that. The replies UCC has given this subcontractor are, in my opinion, unsatisfactory. It might be something we could take a look at and send to the Department of Education and Skills to ask its opinion. The danger is that the prime contractor will go out of business and this subcontractor will never be paid. That is the issue.