asked the Minister for Justice the total number of tenders considered for the cleaning contract which has been awarded for the new Garda headquarters at Mill Street, Galway; the price rating of the tender accepted and how that related to the price rating of each of the other two tenders; the name of the company which was awarded the contract; and if, in fact, the company awarded the contract submitted the highest tender.

It would not be in accordance with normal Government contracts procedures to disclose details of tenders submitted in cases of this nature. A contract for the cleaning of the Garda divisional headquarters at Mill Street, Galway, for a period of one year, was awarded by the Garda authorities to the company which submitted what was judged by them to be the most acceptable tender.

Will the Minister indicate whether the tender accepted was the lowest submitted?

No. The tender that was accepted was the one judged by the Garda authorities to be the most acceptable.

Was there a departure from the normal procedure in relation to the submission or acceptance of tenders in this instance?

No.

The Minister is very informative. I know the information I require would perhaps be better addressed to the Minister's predecessor, as I know the contract was awarded during his predecessor's time. Let me ask if he will give the name of the company whose tender was accepted?

It would not really be strictly in accordance with normal procedure to give such a name——

Of course it would.

——but, as the Deputy will find out herself, the contract was given to Noonan Contract Cleaning of Galway.

What other contracts were awarded to this company during the last two or three years, or what was the total number of contracts awarded by the Department of Justice to this company during that period?

That seems to be a separate question.

I have not got that information.

In view of the information given to us by the Minister, can he say if there is any connection between this firm, Noonan Contract Cleaners, and the former Minister?

It struck me to wonder, looking at the name of the firm quite some time ago in another connection, whether there was any connection between the firm and Deputy Noonan of Limerick West and/or Deputy Noonan of Limerick East, but I have not inquired into it.

The Minister should do that.

If charges of a serious nature are to be made they should be made by——

They should be put down in a formal way.

It is a question down in a formal way. I am asking the Minister if it is not the practice normally to take the lowest tender, whether that practice was not followed in this instance and if not, then why?

I remind the Deputy that most of the invitations to tender include as part of the notice that the tender will not necessarily be awarded to the lowest bidder or to any bidder.

Deputy Lenihan in a little and somewhat disorderly aside has alleged corruption. If Deputy Lenihan wants to make that charge he should stand up like a man and make it.

I asked the Minister a direct question, whether the lowest tender was accepted in this case. Can the Minister tell us that from the information he has before him?

I have already answered that point. The tender was given to the firm that the Garda authorities considered to have put up the most acceptable tender.

Yes or no?

I will not go any further than that.

Quite obviously from what the Minister is saying it was not the lowest tender.

If that is not what I described it as, then I do not know what is.

May I ask a final supplementary? What is the registered address of the company who were awarded this tender?

Am I in order in answering that, a Cheann Comhairle?

It is a matter for the Minister.

It is not covered by the Official Secrets Act.

It is covered by the normal procedures.

That is what Deputy Woods seems to insinuate.

The Minister has been very reticent in his information about the matter. I am just pointing out that it is not covered by the Official Secrets Act.

On Deputy Treacy's question, I have not in my papers a piece of paper with the letterhead of the firm in question, but I am sure that Deputy Geoghegan-Quinn will be quite happy to communicate with Deputy Treacy about the matter.

It is not Deputy Geoghegan-Quinn's job. The Minister should do it properly.