Feargal Quinn (Independent)
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I did not hear the consumer mentioned. Ms McElwee seems to be saying that the construction industry is different from everything else. I grew up in the grocery business and almost everything Ms McElwee said about the construction industry applies to the grocery business. There are family businesses, with sons and daughters working in the business, and huge international competitors. In the long term the winner is the consumer. Why does Ms McElwee believe there must be rules and regulations and REOs for the construction industry that do not exist in other industries? What makes the construction industry different? All industries are competitive. We want to make sure of that. The winner in a competitive market is the consumer.

If there are registered sectoral orders that ensure the prices go up because costs go up, as in the example Ms Winters gave of a business from Northern Ireland being able to compete in the Republic because it did not have the same costs, the benefit to the consumer is a lower cost construction. Why was the consumer or customer not mentioned once? I would like to think the person who buys the construction plays a part. Why does the construction industry have to have different rules?