Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Sinn Féin does not have a problem with the concept of shared services. The example has been given of Laois County Council in respect of payroll and pension services being combined. That certainly makes sense. The concern I have about services and procurement is that other European countries try to keep contracts in small, manageable pieces to escape the binds of e-tendering. I want the Minister and the Department to take this on board. Over the past few years, VECs and local authorities find that procurement is squeezing out small suppliers and local businesses. Many of the contracts awarded could be broken down into smaller chunks and we could be more creative about that. It is simpler to hand over a contract to one company but, given the shape the domestic economy is in, one way of trying to resuscitate it is to break down contracts into small chunks so that companies can successfully tender for them. That way, we can avoid the rigours of the e-tendering system.

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