Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 209: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if there is provision within standard local authority tendering documentation requiring checks to be carried out regarding past compliance of companies tendering for contracts with labour legislation. [11547/06]

Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 210: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his views on introducing a requirement within local authority tendering regulations that contracts can only be awarded to unionised firms. [11548/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 209 and 210 together.

The local government sector operates under public procurement guidelines issued by the Department of Finance. These require contracting authorities, including local authorities, to ensure that tenderers have regard to minimum pay and other legally binding industrial or sectoral agreements when preparing tenders and that tender documents should have an appropriate reference to this.

Transgressions of labour legislation are a matter in the first instance for the labour inspectorate of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, which has the power to examine relevant records and, where breaches of statutory obligations are identified, to have matters rectified.