Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 October 2012
106. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if there are any safeguards in place to ensure that principal building contractors working under a contract with a public body pay their sub contractors for work carried out under the relevant State contract; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42502/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder a public works contract the contractual relationship is between the public body and the main contractor. The public body has no contractual relationship with a subcontractor. Therefore any contractual issue that arises during a contract is exclusively a matter between the main contractor and its sub-contractor.
I am conscious of the difficulties being experienced by sub-contractors. In this regard, the Deputy may be aware that the Programme for Government contains a commitment to introduce new legislation to protect small building subcontractors that have been denied payments from bigger companies. My colleague Minister Brian Hayes has been working with Senator Quinn to develop the Construction Contracts Bill, which is now before the Dáil, into a robust piece of legislation.
The main purpose of the Bill is to help address the issue of non-payment to construction sector subcontractors who have satisfactorily completed work on construction projects. Minister Hayes is now examining the Bill and will decide how best to proceed. It is important that a solution to the problem of non-payment must not place an unnecessary regulatory or cost burden on the parties to the dispute, other parties involved in the project, or the State.
