Feargal Quinn (Independent)

I move amendment No. 5:

In page 6, before section 8, to insert the following new section:

8.—(1) Where any amount due under a construction contract is not paid in full by the day on which the amount is due, the executing party may suspend work under the construction contract by giving notice in writing under subsection (2).

(2) Notice under this subsection shall specify the grounds on which it is intended to suspend work and shall be delivered to the other party—

(a) not earlier than the day after the day on which the amount concerned is due, and

(b) at least 7 days before the proposed suspension is to begin.

(3) Work may not be suspended under subsection (1)—

(a) after payment by the other party of the amount due, or

(b) after the end of the period of 14 days beginning with the day on which the suspension begins.

(4) Where work is suspended under subsection (1) and the ability of the executing party to complete work within a contractual time limit is affected by the suspension of work, the period of suspension shall be disregarded for the purpose of computing the contractual time limit unless the suspension of work is unjustified in the circumstances.

(5) Where work is suspended under subsection (1) and the ability of a subcontractor to complete work within a contractual time limit is affected by the suspension of work, the period of suspension shall be disregarded for the purpose of computing the contractual time limit.

(6) A period of suspension of work under subsection (1) shall also be disregarded for the purpose of computing the time taken to complete the work under another construction contract where—

(a) the construction contract the work under which is suspended is a subcontract,

(b) the other construction contract is also a subcontract and the other party to that other subcontract is the same as the other party to the subcontract the work under which is suspended, and

(c) the ability of the executing party under that other subcontract to complete work within a contractual time limit is affected by the suspension of work.

(7) This section is without prejudice to the right of the other party to the construction contract under which work is suspended to claim for compensation or damages for any loss due to a suspension of work that is unjustified in the circumstances.".

This is to insert a new section on the right to suspend work for non-payment. The amendment confers a new statutory right for contracting parties. A party which has not been fully paid in accordance with the contract and terms of the Bill will now have the right to suspend work under the contract for a period of up to two weeks. This has been part of the problem in the past; somebody who has not been paid could not suspend work and had to continue, getting into more and more debt. The amendment sets out the rules under which the suspension of work can occur. The aim of the amendment is to help to balance the power between contracting parties without unduly hampering completion of the project. The existence of the right should help ensure that payments are made on time.

Where a payment claim is still unpaid following the period of suspension then the appropriate path is for the parties to move on to adjudication and to seek resolution of the matter through that process. This has been a problem for a long time whereby someone who has done work has not been paid but is still obliged to continue doing the work. This provides a new right for a non-paid party to suspend the work that would otherwise be required under the construction contract. This is quite an important section of the Bill.