Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)

I thank the Minister of State for coming here today. I was not really prepared to talk about this but I felt I had to because it is a very important subject. The public procurement process excludes local shops and small businesses and indigenous local businesses. I have sat on five or six school board meetings where this has always been an issue. The school cannot go locally to purchase things that are needed. The school may wish to go locally, so it has been a huge bone of contention on many of the school boards.

Going through the public procurement process is not always going to give good value to the taxpayer. For example, I was in a school where a lift broke down. It was serviced and needed a wearing part every year that cost about €30. The national organising body for the school put out a public procurement process to get tenders for maintenance of the lift, and a new provider won the contract. The new provider could not fix the lift that was easily fixable at €30 but the school could not buy this part itself or get somebody in to fit it because insurance would not stand over it and the new providers would not stand over it either. A new lift had to be put in for the sake of a €30 part. That is unfortunate and it should not really be happening.

I have another ridiculous example on the three quotes issue. If you have a theatre or Government organisation that is putting on a show or hiring a band or comedian, you have to get three quotes. Let us say you are getting Tommy Tiernan. You have to get three quotes for Tommy Tiernan, even though Tommy Tiernan is the only person who can quote for Tommy Tiernan, if the Minister of State knows what I mean. It is a little bit ridiculous in places.

People in local government, especially those working on the ground like municipal district managers, are in the process every day of trying to find solutions to problems and their hands are tied by the very strict guidelines they have to work around. We should come up with some ideas on how to help people on the ground resolve situations and get solutions in a fast and timely manner.

It is well known that to win contracts, people or organisations put forward keen prices, but it is the add-ons you have to watch out for. Lessons need to be learned from the national children's hospital and the ventilator and PPE scandals.