Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State and thank him for his contribution. Unfortunately, I was dealing with the banks earlier today but I like what I heard from the Minister of State. I missed the earlier debate because I was down in the basement where I observed on the monitor that Senators were discussing important issues. I wish I had been here.

A significant example of efficiency improvements is in the aviation sector, where fares have undergone an immense decline in real terms. That has been beneficial to this country. These efficiency gains are a function not only of productivity within airlines but also of pressure on suppliers. If a reduction of 40% can be extracted from Boeing, the savings are passed on to the consumer. Airlines also extracted discounts at airports and sought more efficient methods of retailing. Travel agents have largely disappeared because travellers can do the job themselves. Check-in desks are no longer required at airports because passengers can check in online. Procurement is one element in the efficiency gains we are seeking. I appreciate the Minister of State's comments on SMEs. The current tendering process for 10% of Dublin bus routes is controversial for the wrong reasons. It has been criticised from the point of view that it opens up the market too much when in fact 98% of the small companies in the bus business are precluded from tendering by the requirement that companies tendering for the routes must have an annual turnover of at least €7 million and carry 1.2 million passengers. The school bus service could not operate if this condition were applied to it. This is clearly a case of protectionism by the incumbents. It makes it very difficult to generate competition for a subsidy of €90 million, which our friend and colleague, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, is attempting to open to some competition.

As it currently operates, my impression from the use of listed hotels by organisations which have hospitality is that people can obtain lower prices on the open market. It may be the case that the listed hotels are required to have a certain number of rooms or that rooms must be available for a certain length of time. External examiners and others have told me they were required to stay in a certain hotel because it is the only one that is recognised.

One would not wish for a large bureaucracy to develop. The warning from the National Health Service in the United Kingdom is that an immense administrative edifice was built around services such as bed linen, for which prices were often higher than if the matron had simply bought new bed linen in the local Marks & Spencer store. We do not want to create another bureaucracy.

I have concerns about many services in this country, including the cartelisation of accounting and legal services. I realise the Minister for Justice and Equality is moving legislation on this very area in the Dáil today and the Bill will soon come before the Seanad.

Efficiency and competition do not just happen; they must be made to happen. The Ministers for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform, who have been in charge of these areas, have been doing well. The Bill before us is a useful addition to that picture and I am pleased the Minister of State has accepted it. Nevertheless, eternal vigilance is the price of freedom, including in this case. If we all encounter cases of competition being obstructed in our areas of expertise, the rule of thumb to be applied is that the incumbents are trying to find ways to keep out new entrants. Overall efficiency, particularly in a country such as Ireland with so many young people, demands we ensure incumbents are put under pressure by new entrants because they are the good guys in this regard.

I am pleased with the Minister of State's contribution and I compliment Senator Darragh O'Brien on introducing this legislation, which is a good way forward.