Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for his intervention. The House has been very patient about the Construction Contracts Bill and Opposition Deputies, in particular, have been very patient with me with regard to not bringing the Bill to Committee Stage. It is my intention to do so in a matter of weeks. I apologise for not being more speedy on this. However, even if that Bill had been passed by this House and the Seanad, it would not have dealt with the case to which the Deputy refers. I am aware of the school in Limerick because it was the subject of an Adjournment debate in the Seanad.

We will look at this closely. The pricing of construction contracts is very competitive at present. It is down by over a third from prices at the height of the boom. At one level, that is a great opportunity for the State. We are getting a great deal of value in our construction and a bang for our buck in our spending. However, there is a great deal of cutting back on the ground in order to win those contracts. In addition, the construction industry has changed dramatically in recent years. Much of the work is done by subcontractors and, as the Deputy said, people can be stung in that process. I hope the Bill, which will go to Committee Stage shortly, will deal with some of those issues. Certainly, I believe we have managed in the amendments to deal with the issues raised by the opposition spokespeople. Those issues were the subject of representations that many subcontractors made to the Deputies concerned.

There would be much legal doubt and uncertainty as to whether the State can be involved in effectively blacklisting groups or individuals. There would be huge difficulties constitutionally. Nevertheless, we might look at it again on Committee Stage and seek the Deputy's intervention then.

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