Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to second my colleague's proposal. It is good legislation which takes stock of the system of public procurement as well as attempting to deal with other aspects. Other than European Union law which applies to certain contracts over a certain value, we do not have public procurement law in this country. We have public procurement practice instead. I do not know if the green book, which contained guidance for public bodies in this regard, is still in use.

The Minister of State would do well to consider the possibility of enacting a public procurement law to give statutory guidance on what is and is not permitted. This issue drives people mad and it is very difficult to explain to them when they see contractors from other countries doing work in this country that Irish contractors are doing abroad. This legislation is an attempt to address inequity in what companies are meant to do. People see different regulations being applied here which are not applied in other jurisdictions, in the United Kingdom in particular.

I know of people who worked on major contracts in the North of Ireland and they were subject to community benefit requirements in contracts, such as employing and training local trainees and employing local subcontractors. People could not understand why this could not be done here. It is argued that the European Union regulations do not allow for such considerations and that the best price must be awarded the contract. However, I note that the sale of Siteserv did not go to the best priced tender. If the Government can do it for Siteserv, then any Government should be able to do it to ensure a community benefit requirement is included, along with getting the best possible price for the State, which is also very important.

The Bill is not designed to increase prices. Public procurement is essential for the running of an economy such as ours but factors other than pricing must be considered. The lowest price may not always be successful. This Bill attempts to put meat on the bones of what would be required from contracts with regard to training, recruitment, the availability of subcontracting opportunities, facilitating the involvement of SMEs and the promotion of innovation. At all times the legislation provides that we must conform with the legislative provisions of the European Union, which is critical. It is also clear that social clauses in contracts are used in public procurement contracts in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK. If they can do it, we should be doing it because if we are not, we are putting ourselves at a competitive and a social disadvantage. This proposed legislation should be considered seriously and amendments should be proposed by the Government on Committee Stage. We are proposing this legislation as being very beneficial while also securing the openness of our economy which is to everyone's benefit. I am proud to be associated with this legislation and I am delighted to second it. I wish the House would support it on Second Stage.