Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State and I understand his comment about retrospective application. Perhaps my query will be too detailed for him, but I want to find out if a certain scenario is included. What happens if a contract has not been signed and a dispute is ongoing? What happens if the dispute is about a payment, the theft of machinery or whatever, but a contract was not signed before the Bill was enacted? It is a word of mouth contract so it is one person's word against another. Can the wronged person - in this instance, the subcontractor - refer the matter to the adjudicator? Can he or she do so particularly when payments have not been made to the bank for two years? Is there any way the subcontractor can approach the adjudicator or persons in this instance? I am one of many Senators but I know of two cases. I am sure many other Senators know subcontractors who have been diddled, fiddled or whatever one likes to call it in various ways, and the disputes are ongoing. This has happened.