Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

I understand it has not been dealt with but something must be done about this. This will not favour a particular industry but will address a self-evident problem where if cement, tarmacadam and so on are delivered and not paid for, there is no getting it back. It is important to examine this and come up with a solution.

The one thing we do not want to see is that people who have genuinely provided goods in order that society can function and who run their businesses well become the innocent victims. One cannot always expect payment prior to delivery. When I ran a co-operative, we had 30 days, and in some cases 60 days if we were lucky, to pay bills. However, one could not work on the basis of payment on delivery. Credit is part of business but the problem with cement is that once it is delivered, it cannot be returned and there cannot be retention of title. It is important, therefore, that people can give credit because if credit is taken out of business, much of the lifeblood of business will be taken. We have to protect those who, in good faith, give credit because, currently, if anything goes wrong, it is almost impossible for them to get their money back.

See this speech in context