Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Like my colleagues, I welcome the opportunity to make a few points on this Bill. My party made a similar attempt through the Seanad, as Deputy Darragh O'Brien mentioned, in 2015. Now, through Deputy Frank O'Rourke, we have an opportunity for the House to collectively move this issue forward.

In our wish to be good Europeans, we have been penny wise and pound foolish. While the Committee of Public Accounts, in the report that was prepared by the Minister of State's colleagues and Deputy Darragh O'Brien some years ago in the Administration before last, proved that far from being at the top of the class in doing our business in a smart way we were among the bottom of the class with Cyprus. I will use this House as an example. For generations, the uniforms of ushers in this House were produced in County Sligo, all with Irish materials, through the master tailor, Mr. Joseph Martin junior - he being the third generation. He was asked to maintain the tender price so that it could go for public tender. It did, and now those uniforms are manufactured in Belgium and distributed through an Irish agent.

In recent years, in the Dail restaurants we have had a change and upgrade in delft and other things and a cursory glance on the back of the plates will show that they were manufactured in the United Arab Emirates. I submit that if one were in the German Parliament or the French Parliament, or the Flemish Parliament, or the Parliament of the Belgians and other member states throughout the entire EU 27, one would not see that. As I said, in our relentless approach as being the best Europeans, we have been among the worst of Irish people.

We need to be smarter about how we do our business. We have been consumed with the cost and price, always overlooking the value to the economy. Under existing rules, even in advance of this Bill, the economically most advantageous clause that one is supposed to consider was never given the appropriate weighting that it deserves. Deputy Frank O'Rourke's Bill provides an opportunity for Government. We will win this, whether Government supports it or not - there is a rumour that the Government intends to vote against it on Thursday. With the support of Sinn Féin, the Independents and others, we will win this.

Let us progress it to pre-legislative scrutiny. Let the Government embrace the potential, as Deputy Frank O'Rourke outlined, for us to welcome amendments to improve the Bill. Above all, let the Government give a taste of the €12 billion in Irish expenditure, much of which is currently going to other countries needlessly when there are small and medium-sized enterprises in this country which cannot do without it.

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