Trevor Sargent
Ceist:98 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Finance the criteria by which local labour clauses can be inserted into contracts for public works projects funded through the European Structural Fund.
Written Answers. - Public Works Contracts.
EU Directives on public procurement must be followed if a project is funded from European Structural Funds or if the value of a contract is over EU thresholds. It is a responsibility of the contracting entity to ensure that any contract terms are fully in accordance with the terms of the Directives. If they are not legal action may result.
Whether or not a local labour clause is inserted into a contract is a matter for the contracting entities. A local labour clause as part of a contract would not, in itself, appear to be automatically in breach of either the EU Directives or Treaty obligations, provided it had no discriminatory effect, particularly on tenderers from other member states. In practice, there might be great difficulty in avoiding all danger of legal challenge, where such discrimination could be alleged to operate, if local labour clauses were to apply.