Main contractors have insisted they are not trying to "crush" subcontractors by passing on price cuts on public sector jobs.rnChief executives at a Construction News debate last week said they were only looking for their suppliers to agree to the type of agreements they were signing themselves.rnThe government is looking to cut the cost of capital projects across the public sector as it fights to reduce the national deficit. Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude has asked for savings from its biggest contractors on existing projects,while Partnerships for Schools is seeking 40 per cent cuts to the cost of approved schools schemes.rnIn some cases, the squeeze has been passed directly on to subcontractors, and the Specialist Engineering Contractors' Group has written to Mr Maude in a bid to protect suppliers.
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