Gerard Craughwell (Independent)
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The Minister of State is welcome to the House.

Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State is very welcome. Four State contracts are under way in Monaghan town at present, all of which have been secured by contractors from outside the State. I understand the requirements of the State tendering process but is there a need for a review of that process to ensure absolute fairness? Local people in Monaghan naturally are asking questions about the process that resulted in this happening and whether it is truly fair and just. They are asking whether it is not strange that in awarding four State contracts, not a single contractor from Monaghan was successful. After all, they employ local people, buy their materials from local suppliers and pay rates. People need assurance that the current system of assessment is truly effective. They need to be assured that the same criteria are used fairly for all tenders. There needs to be absolute assurance that there are no loopholes, that is, that the current criteria of the tendering process do not give contractors from outside the State any unfair advantage. Are there adequate inspections during and at the end of such contracts to ensure the criteria have been adhered to by the successful contractors? People must be assured that there is a level playing pitch and that the Department is doing all it can to ensure this is the case.

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Donohoe. Public procurement is a key part of the Government's overall reform agenda. The public procurement process is governed by EU legislation and national rules and guidelines. The aim of these rules is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime that delivers best value for money. It is important to point out that this regime also works to the benefit of Irish suppliers wishing to supply goods, service or works in other EU member states. When carrying out procurement procedures, contracting authorities require suppliers to comply with a wide variety of legislation in areas that would include taxation, social policy, the environment and employment law. Compliance with the legislation covering these areas is rightly a matter for the relevant Departments or agencies or both involved in the particular procurement process.Public procurement regulations require applicants to meet certain standards when applying for public contracts. That applies across the board.

The criteria upon which contracting authorities may exclude applicants from the award procedure of public contracts are set out in the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations and the EU public procurement directives of 2014. Before an applicant is excluded for certain breaches, the applicant may make a case and provide supporting evidence as to why it should not be excluded. The contracting authority must consider this evidence before deciding whether to exclude or include an applicant. In addition, the qualifying tenderer must submit signed declarations stating that none of the circumstances, for example, participation in a criminal organisation, corruption, terrorist offences etc. outlined in Article 57 of the procurement directive apply. Contracting authorities may also require applicants for public contracts to declare that they have not breached their obligations in the fields of environmental, social and labour law established by European Union law, national law, and collective agreements or by the international environmental, social and labour law provisions listed in annexe X of the procurement directive. These requirements are set out in the template documents used in tendering for goods and services, which have been developed by the Office of Government Procurement in conjunction with the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Chief State Solicitor.

A comprehensive interpretation of the public procurement directives, Public Procurement Guidelines for Goods and Services, has been developed to improve consistency and promote best practice in the application of the public procurement rules. In addition to developing guidance and providing advice to contracting authorities, the Office of Government Procurement has responsibility for developing and setting out the overarching policy framework for public procurement in Ireland. In this regard, the Office of Government Procurement has developed the national public procurement policy framework which consists of five strands, including legislation; Government policy; the capital works management framework for public works; general procurement guidelines for goods and services; and more detailed technical guidelines, template documentation and information notes, as issued periodically by the Office of Government Procurement. This framework enables a more consistent approach to public procurement across the public sector by setting out the procurement procedures to be followed by public bodies. The framework supports contracting authorities, including the four key sectors, namely, health, education, local government and defence, individual Departments, offices, commercial and non-commercial State bodies, and entities which are subsidised at a rate of 50% or more by a public body, when awarding contracts for works, goods and services. It enables public bodies to adopt procedures to meet their public procurement requirements and facilitates compliance with EU and national procurement rules. While the Office of Government Procurement guidelines facilitates and enables compliance with public procurement rules, it is the responsibility of each contracting authority to ensure that they adhere to these rules.

Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response. As I am sure he can appreciate, it is very frustrating for a local contractor who does not see one, two or three but four contracts going to contractors from outside the State, bearing in mind that these jobs are not that big to start with. It is frustrating for people who are left wondering why their tender was not successful. I understand what the Minister of State has said but it is important that the rules and guidelines that are in place for the awarding of these contracts are adhered to. The Minister of State stated in conclusion that "it is the responsibility of each contracting authority to ensure that they adhere to these rules". I seek an assurance from the Minister of State that there are adequate checks and balances in place to ensure the contracting authority is doing what it is meant to be doing, which is to ensure that the people who are successful in these contracts, to whom I wish good luck, adopt the same rules and regulations as others.

Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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I agree wholeheartedly with the Senator about requiring that every single contractor tendering for a project in Ireland, irrespective of from where the contractor emanates, is subject to the same set of terms and conditions and is required to comply with all of the regulatory regime underpinning the contracting process here in Ireland. The Senator referred to oversight. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform requires those charged with the delivery of public works to comply with the public spending code and the capital works management framework.That sets out the high-level principles that apply to project governance, in particular the procedures that must be followed by bodies with delegated sanction for capital expenditure - those being the awarding bodies I mentioned earlier. All projects are required to complete the review stages set out in the code before sanction is given to go to tender. That process is undertaken between the sponsoring agency and the sanctioning authority.

This is topical and a timely intervention on the part of the Department. A review of the public spending code is under way in the Department. As elements of the review are completed the associated updated guidance will be published. Work is ongoing on updating the requirements for the various stages required in the process of selection, appraisal, approval and delivery of capital investment projects. That review of the public spending code will be completed in the first quarter of this year.