Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. I will communicate his point to the Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath. I know it is a commitment by this Government, as it was with the previous Government, that SMEs would have access. I know the former Minister with responsibility for enterprise, Deputy Heather Humphreys, facilitated access and the current Tánaiste is doing so as well. My old role which involved dealing with procurement has been taken over by the Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth, and I wish him well in his portfolio. Representatives of ISME had regular access both to me and senior officials in the Office of Government Procurement. A particular matter can be communicated either through my office or directly to the Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath. As I stated at the outset, both the labour and employer delegation were laid out by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and IBEC. My understanding is that this is the normal practice. If there is a particular problem that Deputy Shanahan wants to raise but does not want to do it in the Dáil, I have no difficulty in referring it back to the Minister.

See this speech in context