Results 1,601-1,620 of 11,861 for speaker:Brian Hayes

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: When a contract is awarded, a schedule of payments by the State to the main contractor is agreed. The contractor then receives those payments as the work is done and he or she in turn pays the subcontractors. I know what the Deputy is getting at, but I do not see the significance of this. When I read this again last night one of the first thoughts that came to mind was that it is part of a...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: That is a very good suggestion. The INTO, ASTI and TUI should be asked for their observations on that. It is a very interesting suggestion that the money would go to the schools and based on the hand-over to the teachers we should all know about it, rather than the current centralised system where they are paid on time every two weeks. They might have something to say about that, but it is...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: We are examining that in terms of a project bank account, which is the point Deputy McDonald raised. These have been established in the UK and, as I understand it, the main contractor and the subcontractors are all referred to and paid out of this designated project account and in that way they know exactly where they stand in terms of the total drawdown funds that the state makes available...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: It does not need to be included in legislation. It is a policy decision. We do not need to put it into law.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: That is an interesting discussion but I am not sure how germane it is to the Bill. It is an important part of the construction sector as we try to improve construction levels and see greater activity in the area. I think it is fair to say that public procurement within the construction sector operates in the most successful way when the authority makes clear what it wants at the...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: That is half the battle.

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Second Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: And Deputy Phil Hogan.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: Deputy Fleming is right in saying there is a problem. I want to be up-front and admit there is an issue here largely driven by the fact that there is such competition for construction contracts because the price has come down substantially. If one speaks to the Minister for Education and Skills, he will tell one that on average, there has been a reduction of between 30% and 40% on what we...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: The major difference is that we now have standardised contracts which have made a significant difference in terms of giving certainty to public authorities engaged in this. I will be frank. There are too many people involved in public procurement who do not have the specialist knowledge of markets and sectors. One of the things we have done within procurement recently is to recruit people...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: From An Bord Pleanála?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: At the end of Second Stage I took the view that there should be no thresholds. If we were going as low as €10,000, why have any threshold at all? We could have made it clear for everyone. However, the Attorney General's advice was, to avoid vexatious claims, there should be some threshold limit. Given the fact that we all must take advice given on the basis of precedent and...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: Two issues arise. First, the Bill makes provision for the withdrawal of labour, although I am unsure in which section. This is important. There is a recognition of the need for a cooling down period whereby, if people take this route, they can re-examine the issues and achieve a fair resolution. Notwithstanding any adjudication procedure, every citizen has a fundamental right to take an...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: Amendments Nos. 6, 15, 17 and 18 are grouped. I move amendment No. 6: In page 4, subsection (1), to delete lines 43 and 44 and in page 5, to delete lines 1 to 4.This is one of the main issues that was raised in the consultation process that formed part of the regulatory impact assessment. I recognise the work of Deputies Fleming and McDonald who were part of that regulatory assessment. It...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: I very much agree with what Deputy Creed said. In fairness to Senator Quinn, the whole objective of the Bill was to help the small guy to ensure he had some rights in this and that. Through adjudication, there would be a low cost, or no cost, and a straightforward way of achieving fairness. As I understand it, thresholds were initially set high because the original Bill contained financial...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: Deputy McDonald has one as well. It is the same issue.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: I will put on record the official reply and we can then have a discussion about it. I am addressing amendments Nos. 5, 13 and 38. While there are merits in the Deputy's proposals, they are focused on issues that are really outside the scope of this legislation. This Bill is designed to address failures to pay construction sector contractors, subcontractors and sub-subcontractors who have...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: From studying this in recent years I have learned about the complete lack of construction contracts in Ireland. There is poor practice throughout the industry with regard to regulating contracts and ensuring we have enforceable contracts. One of the reasons the Bill was presented by Senator Quinn and others was that people had been burned substantially. On an all-party basis we agreed this...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: I move amendment No. 4: In page 4, subsection (1), line 33, to delete "Finance" and substitute "Public Expenditure and Reform".This amendment allocates responsibility for policy and administration of legislation to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. This is a standard provision. He is my boss.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: We will look at it.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Construction Contracts Bill 2010: Committee Stage (15 May 2013)

Brian Hayes: From the outset, I have had a very open approach to the Bill, because it is not my Bill. When it returns to the Seanad, I will not be taking it and it will be a matter for Senator Quinn to take forward. The Government has been really committed to trying to get this to work. However, it must not extend it so far beyond the original objective that it becomes inoperable and a much bigger...