Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I do not believe it is possible to restrict access to the competitive tendering systems in place based on the location of a business. At a certain level of procurement expenditure, one is required to place a notice in the Official Journal of the European Communities and bring the tender to the attention of all competitors within the European wide system. This is good because it ensures our suppliers are competitive and recognise in which areas they have to compete with companies from other parts of Europe. The bottom line is that the Government must secure best value from taxpayers' money.

It would be great if every tender issued was taken up on a competitive basis by an Irish firm. I have received representations from people who have examined the procurement of a service provided to the health sector by a non-Irish entity and found it was not as good as the service provided by previous suppliers for many years in terms of having people on site and providing after-sales services and maintenance contracts. A wider perspective was taken when the contract came up again.

As I indicated, it is not simply a matter of accepting the cheapest tender as wider issues must be taken into account. Sometimes people learn the hard way, through experience, that the lowest tender does not necessarily deliver the best outcome. I have seen this in the provision of sanitary services in my home area where the lowest tender secured the contract but the delivery of the contract was full of problems and caused great inconvenience for a long time. It may well have cost the local authority more than if it had gone elsewhere, which can happen.

The main thrust of the Deputy's question was whether there was any way one could limit tenders to Irish manufacturers. It depends on the size of the contract and whether one would have to notify people outside the country. That is the criterion. The size of the contract determines what clicks into the EU Journal advertisement requirement under EU competition law.

As I said, it requires people who study these tenders and make decisions on them to recognise that there are sometimes after-sales issues and after-tender maintenance requirements that need to be factored in. I am always of the view that if there is very little in the difference, one should give it to an Irish firm, although that must be legal and appropriate. I am sure such judgments are made by people at various times.

I am not aware that any problem exists in the food and catering area in terms of the meat being used, whether in the health sector or elsewhere. I have not come across people who have indicated that there is a problem there. Beef from outside the EU is eaten in this country. Local farmers and organisations have a view about that but it is part of the ebb and flow of trade and trade agreements. As happened in the past, basic standards were not met and a temporary ban was brought to bear. These issues are monitored all the time.

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