asked the Minister for Health whether he is aware that owing to the unfair and quite unusual conditions of contract issued to building contractors tendering for the Manorhamilton Hospital, County Leitrim, very few contractors would tender, and so maximum competition was not effected; and what steps he intends taking to remedy the position.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Hospital Contract Conditions.
I approved of the conditions of contract proposed by the local authority for the building contract for Manorhamilton Hospital. I considered these conditions quite fair and I do not agree with the suggestion in the Deputy's question that they were not fair.
The tenders received are being considered by the local authority and their advisers and as the question of the acceptance of a tender is sub judice I am not prepared to say anything further at present.
Is the Minister aware that standard conditions of contract were agreed on between the Federation of Building Contractors of Ireland on the one hand and the Royal Institute of Architects on the other, and that those conditions of contract have been used in connection with Galway and Limerick regional hospitals with, I might say, benefit to the clients and satisfaction to the contractors concerned? Furthermore, is the Minister aware that only something like four or five contractors went for this job instead of something like 21 contractors in other cases? Is the Minister further aware——
The Deputy is making a speech.
I merely want to ask this question. Is the Minister aware that a builder was importuned to put in a tender after the closing date—I take it in view of the paucity of entrants for the contract?
I am not aware that any builder was importuned to put in a tender. I am aware that the Federation of Builders invited their members not to tender, and that possibly as a result of the activities of the Federation of Builders in the matter, some of their members did not tender. I should point out to the Deputy that the contents of the articles of agreement and conditions of contract in cases of this kind are primarily ones to be determined by the local authority. In this case I want to make quite clear that the conditions of contract were approved by the Department.
I should like to make it quite clear to the Minister that it was only as a result of the very unusual and extremely unfair conditions of contract that the Federation of Builders recommended to their members that they should not tender for this contract. The result has been that the ratepayers of Leitrim and the citizens of Ireland generally have not got the benefit they should have got. If the Minister takes into account the fact that these general conditions of contract have been approved for other hospitals by his own Department, I think it will be agreed that it seems a rather extraordinary step and one that, on the face of it, looks as if it should be inquired into.
I think that some, at least, of the conditions to which exception was taken by the Federation of Builders had been incorporated in some other contracts. I think it is unfortunate that the Federation of Builders sought to induce their members not to tender. There was, I think, a very short lapse of time between the lodgment of the complaint by the Federation of Builders to the local authority and the issue of the request to the members of the builders' federation not to tender. I think it was unfortunate that further time was not allowed to permit of the matter being discussed.
Perhaps that was unfortunate, but I think it was still more unfortunate that the Department departed from the usual standards. Perhaps the Minister would consider using the standard conditions of contract and readvertising?