LGA consults on draft procurement pledge for local authorities

The Local Government Association has decided to launch a consultation on a draft procurement pledge for local authorities, rather than adopt a Cabinet Office version designed for the public sector.

Cllr Peter Fleming, Chairman of the LGA’s Improvement Board, said: “There is a desire among town halls to build consensus with the Government on this issue, but it is important that any agreement isn’t shaped around the interests of big business.

“The Local Government Procurement Pledge seeks to address the issues which councils have previously raised about the Government’s procurement proposals and the complexity of EU rules around the issue.”

Local authorities are estimated to spend more than £62bn in the private sector each year.

The LGA said it also planned to support councils to use procurement more effectively. This would include: 

• Identifying and promoting current good practice. This would involve building on the work done through the Quick Wins and Big Wins strategies; encouraging councils to drop Pre Qualification Questionnaires (PQQs) for contracts under £100k; and encouraging councils to advertise their contract opportunities on Contracts Finder and regional portals;
• Co-ordinating and facilitating a ‘voice’ for the sector through the National Advisory Group for Local Government Procurement;
• Encouraging greater collaboration and joint procurement by local authorities – including providing support to eight category management projects involving 70 local authorities; and
• Help in navigating EU procurement legislation and regulation through publications such as Buying into Communities.

The LGA insisted that it wanted to work with the Cabinet Office and central government to help improve all public procurement.

It said: “Public procurement is highly regulated particularly by the European Union and over the years the European procurement rules have become more and more complicated. We need help from government to put the power of procurement back into the hands of local government.

“There are many aspects of the current procurement ‘culture’ that we think can only be challenged and changed collectively by us, including reducing the risk averse approach to public sector procurement.”

The Cabinet Office meanwhile announced that 17 industry bodies and suppliers had signed up to the Government’s Procurement Pledge. They include British Chambers of Commerce, the Confederation for British Industry, the Institute of Directors and the UK Contractors Group.

The Government has also published data on £70bn of potential future contracts over the next five years. These cover 13 different sectors, including construction, property, medical and police equipment.

Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude said: “Never before has a government been so open about its long-term business needs. Industry leaders recognise the value of publishing these pipelines and that is why they support our reforms which will boost growth.

“Publishing data on what we plan to buy – whether it’s tunnels or computers – means we can identify skills gaps sooner and give industry a heads up so UK businesses are in a better position to compete.”

THE TWO PLEDGES

The LGA’s Local Government Procurement Pledge

“Local government will use all efforts to use procurement to help:

• Deliver value for public money;
• Drive local economic growth and regeneration;
• Provide inclusive services through a diverse supplier base.

“To this end we pledge to increase our efforts:

• to promote and implement procurement processes that are less bureaucratic and burdensome;
• to build our skills, capacity and expertise in procurement;
• to engage effectively with users, citizens and partners to ensure that the goods and or services being procured meet their needs and where appropriate involve them in the procurement process;
• to engage effectively with suppliers through market days, pre-procurement dialogue, and provide transparent feedback, making them aware of trading opportunities and securing their input and expertise;
• to engage with the Chambers of Commerce and Small Business Federation, voluntary sector representatives, and other representative trade & industry bodies;
• to seek feedback from suppliers and use this learning to further improve procurement processes.”

The Cabinet Office’s Procurement Pledge

1. "Give potential providers greater certainty of our future demand;
2. Work with potential providers to identify and address strategic capabilities in supply chains to ensure providers are prepared to meet this future demand;
3. Operate an open door policy for business so that we can develop a more strategic relationship with current and future providers;
4. Give all types of potential providers, including smaller providers, simpler, more streamlined procurement processes;
5. Back UK business when bidding for contracts overseas."

More detail on each aspect of the Cabinet Office's pledge can be found here.

Philip Hoult