Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

This is an area I will have a look at in the context of the reform of public services. It is important that procurement plans or procurement policy are not structured in such a way as to cause delay by requiring people away from the organisation to do the procuring when those in front line management positions are in a position to identify prospective suppliers. They would have built up a relationship with them because of the work they do and the type of engagement in which they are involved and would be quoted tenders far quicker than going through a centralised system. Deputy Kenny made the point that related activities, whether at local government level or elsewhere, could be grouped to allow greater streamlining of the requirements of various individual councils for certain materials, in terms of road making and so on and that be tendered for in group manner. In an effort to get better value for money it seems to me that has merit and it should be part of the agenda of reform that we are talking about undertaking as soon as the task force reports in the summer.

See this speech in context