Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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I welcome all the witnesses very warmly. I know their organisations have been very active on this and have advocated strongly. I commend that work. They have put forward a very compelling argument and identify quite precisely the flaws in the system. I am conscious of the necessity for the State to get this right given the level of spend, €9 billion, and the cost if we get it wrong in respect of jobs and innovation for SMEs and particularly for microbusinesses. The submissions and discussion today can inform from the front line the questions we pursue with the OGP and the Department.

The witnesses have said making price the benchmark is problematic. Can they say a bit more about that? They mention predatory pricing. An alarm goes off in my head when I hear that term. I would like to hear more about that. Mr. Noonan mentioned quality being undermined or not considered. Could he tell us about that? Both witnesses identify the problem of aggregate contracts. When we raise this with the system we get a simplistic view that people can club together if they are trained and join forces. We need to hear the reality check on that. What is the realistic level for the unbundling of contracts?