State to spend €200k on pest control in Leinster House over next three years
Gordon Deegan
The State agency that runs Leinster House is to spend up to €200,000 on pest control services over the next three years.
In a tender issued today by the Houses of Oireachtas Commission, it states that “a high quality of service is required to ensure that the parliamentary community is protected from the risk of pests”.
The specific pests to be controlled include rats, mice, flies, wasps, bees, moths, ants, cockroaches, silverfish, firebrats, woodworm and booklice.
The tender states that the provider will be required to provide a pest control service at the Leinster House complex and several additional buildings.
The tender states that it is important that the public areas of the Leinster House complex "are welcoming to visitors and are very well maintained to reflect well on the institution".
Leinster House caters for 174 TDs and 60 members of Seanad Éireann while the Commission is staffed by 700.
The tender further states that the tender adds that "it is also important that clean and functional catering and other facilities are provided to our staff and to visitors".
It states: "Therefore, a high quality of service is required to ensure that the parliamentary community is protected from the risk of pests.”
On the €200,000 cost, the tender states that the tenderers must understand “that this figure is an estimate only based on current and future expected usage”.
The tender states that “given the high-profile nature of the Parliamentary environment, the Houses of the Oireachtas wish to implement a comprehensive and effective service for the control of pests”.
The tender states that these services must be delivered in a discrete, flexible and cost-effective way and must be compliant with relevant health and safety regulations and environmental best practice.
The Houses of the Oireachtas Commission states that the pest control plan should be specific to the site, taking into account the unique challenges and requirements of the Houses of the Oireachtas.
The tender states that the Oireeachtas currently has a pest control service, and it includes the provision and service of internal and external bait boxes, fly killing units, insect monitoring points and moth inhibitors.
As part of the new tender works, the Oireachtas states that the provider must ensure all pest carcasses, both rodent and insect, are disposed of correctly so as not to cause a health and safety risk or cause an environmental risk such as secondary poisoning and deliver consistent and efficient pest control services.
The tender states that the Houses of the Oireachtas, while primarily serving as office accommodation, also encompasses a significant food preparation and service operation.
The tender states that the operation necessitates the implementation of specific pest control measures to ensure the highest standards of hygiene and safety.
The tender states that the Oireachtas complex houses a small creche and the pest control bait boxes must be placed in locations that are completely inaccessible to children, especially in outdoor play areas.
Those looking to tender have until August 6th to do so.
