Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The outturn that we achieved in 2021 represented a strong performance, particularly in light of the fact that non-essential construction was closed for so long. My overall message is that, with a record budget of €12 billion in 2022, I want to see that money spent on new schools, our hospitals, climate action measures, public transport projects, road projects and so on.

Working with the Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth, we have introduced changes in the area of procurement that recognise the reality of the existing inflationary pressures. Those pressures often present at the point where the tender is submitted and before the award of the contract. They often present during a live contract as well. As such, the ability to vary the price is an issue that we have addressed through a reduction in the period of the fixed-price contract and an improvement in the ability of contractors to recover unforeseen exceptional costs above a certain threshold.

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