Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The enforcement of tax, social welfare and employment legislation, as well as health and safety and building control regulations, etc., apply equally to public and private sector contracts. Consequently, it is not for me, as Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, to set out a separate policy for public sector contracts. It is the responsibility of each contracting authority to ensure contracts are awarded to compliant businesses through the standard procedures contained in the procurement process.

The public works contracts make provision for certain contractual remedies where a contractor's or a subcontractor's workers have not been paid in accordance with statutory requirements. The contracts also permit deductions to be made from payments in accordance with the legislation governing taxation. Health and safety legislation is also underlined and enforced throughout the contract enshrining legal requirements as conditions of contract to ensure serious health and safety breaches may be relied on as breach of contract leading to termination.

These are in addition to the remedies contained in law which are enforced by the appropriate statutory bodies which possess the necessary powers to investigate and to bring proceedings.

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