Scottish Government to consult on package of procurement reforms

The Scottish Government has published a Procurement Reform Bill designed to ensure that all public bodies “adopt transparent, streamlined and standardised procurement processes that are friendly to Scottish businesses”.

The consultation, which can be viewed here, covers a range of proposals including:

  • A new general duty on public bodies to conduct procurement in an “effective and proportionate” manner;
  • A prohibition on charges being levied for the issue of tender documents;
  • Standardisation of the pre-qualification process for public contracts;
  • Ensuring that suppliers receive de-brief information in situations not covered by 2012 regulations;
  • Before starting a procurement process, a public body should consider and act to facilitate newer businesses, SME and Third Sector access as part of their procurement strategy for every requirement;
  • A requirement that public bodies use a single online portal to advertise and award all public contracts above a given threshold;
  • Increased transparency within supply chains for major contracts and capital structure programmes;
  • A possible requirement for public bodies to publish contract information proactively;
  • How procurement can be used to encourage innovation and growth. This might include a statutory requirement that purchasers must permit the submission of variant bids;
  • An overarching duty on public bodies to act in a way that promotes economic, social and environmental well-being through procurement activity;
  • The use of community benefits clauses, including using major public contracts to promote jobs and training opportunities;
  • The use of provisions to promote greater use of supported businesses by the public sector;
  • Provisions to allow public bodies in Scotland to address poor performing suppliers and inappropriate conduct, both in relation to the delivery of contracts and business standards and behaviour;
  • Measures to promote compliance with the Bill’s provisions that are effective, while at the same time avoiding unnecessary costs and risks.

The executive summary for the consultation said: “It is important that public services are outcomes based and person centred, and these principles apply to procurement as much as any other aspect of public service. Indeed, procurement is an area where process directly affects outcome.

“In order to realise the full potential of procurement, we need to ensure that the legal and policy frameworks for public procurement in Scotland are transparent, responsive and fit for purpose.

“The Bill will establish a national legislative framework for sustainable public procurement that supports Scotland’s economic growth by delivering economic, social and environmental benefits, supporting innovation and promoting processes and systems which are transparent, streamlined, standardised, proportionate, fair and business-friendly.”

The Scottish public sector is estimated to spend more than £9bn every year. In 2011, nearly half (45%) of this spending was with small or medium sized businesses, the Scottish Government said.

Alex Neil, Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment, said: “Good public procurement is a vital contributor to growing the economy and creating jobs and training opportunities.

“More effective and efficient public services will play a key economic and social role in Scotland’s future and public procurement is an important lever for change.”

Liz Cameron, Chief Executive of Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said: “Scottish Chambers of Commerce have been pressing the Scottish Government for some time to take action to ensure that public bodies adhere to best practice in procurement.

“We have worked in partnership to successfully deliver significant reforms, but there remains more to do to ensure that the impact of public procurement as an economic lever is optimised.”

Philip Hoult