Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. That is interesting. Getting value for money is very important in the area of public procurement. We often hear talk of the supposed cost efficiencies of the market relative to the public sector, yet many of the large cost overruns come from large public procurement capital projects. The national children's hospital is a noteworthy example but 35 out of 38 health and education projects nationwide ran over the agreed contract price, which is an issue the Minister raised during his time in opposition. Given that price is generally the deciding factor in the awarding of contracts for large capital projects, will this review examine abnormally low contract bids or lowball offers with a view to ascertaining whether there is a relationship between successful low-cost tenders and large cost overruns? If such a relationship were shown to exist, this would indicate that increased regulation is also required for low-cost contracts, as such bids could be a precursor to cost overruns.

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