Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There has been extensive consultation with every provider across the country. We are now expanding this service. This is the first phase of that. We went through it with the providers before the request for tender went out. There has been a lot of explanation and I do not understand why the providers will have to employ a person to put in the requests for tender because they should have a good idea as to what they need to do at this stage. They should be confident in terms of the service delivery they provide. We are considering the quality of the local service. A significant amount of work has gone into this. As the Deputy is aware, I do not have a choice and I have to put this out for tender. We have put a strong focus on local service and the providers' connections with the local community. There is no reason providers cannot be successful in the tender.

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