Businesses praise Government procurement policy but slam pace of reform

Businesses believe that the Government’s attempts to reform public procurement represent a step in the right direction but are critical of the pace of implementation, the CBI has claimed.

A survey of 100 firms conducted by the business lobbying organisation saw respondents give a score of 8/10 when asked if Government policy was heading in the right direction.

But implementation of procurement reform and reducing the the complexity of the procurement process were given average scores of 5/10 and 3/10 respectively. Other scores were:

  • Achieving faster procurement: 4/10.
  • Information about future opportunities: 7/10.
  • LEAN training (which is intended to address a claimed deficit of commercial skills and expertise in the public sector): 6/10.

The CBI said: “Across the board the rate of reform requires more urgency. The lack of progress on turning sound policy into actual change is not only damaging to government and costly to the taxpayer, but it also stunts growth.

“It also prevents the development of long-term mutually beneficial relationships between government and its suppliers which could have a positive impact on key areas such as industrial policy, cost reduction and the implementation of broader public service reforms.”

According to the CBI, respondents highlighted the need for bid documents to be simplified and standardised and the number of bid portals to be cut. Pipelines were welcomed but all aspects of them must be developed and their use made more widespread, it said.

The organisation added: “Individual departments can drive reform further, by keeping to deadlines and publishing procurement performance metrics.”

John Cridland, CBI Director General, said: “The recent problems over the procurement of the West Coast franchise have once again highlighted the challenge the public sector faces in its relationship with the private sector.

 “As the complexity of deals increases, we need to see urgent improvement in the level of commercial skills that are second-nature to businesses, but are too often absent in public sector procurement. And more contracts should be focused on agreed outcomes, which deliver certainty and value for the taxpayer.”