OGC issues guidance to central government departments on transparency
The Office for Government Commerce has published practical guidance to help central government departments meet the government’s requirements for transparency in public sector procurement and contracting.
The guidance provides information on publishing ICT contracts and tender documents, and is applicable to all central government departments, all non-departmental public bodies, NHS bodies and trading funds. “Separate requirements are in place for the wider public sector such as local authorities,” the OGC said.
The guidance includes a set of common principles, which have been designed to help departments take a consistent approach to meeting the government’s requirements. There is also advice for departments on the publication process.
The government’s commitments – set out in a letter from the Prime Minister on 31 May 2010 and intended to help the public hold Whitehall and politicians to account – are:
- All new central government ICT contracts to be published online from July 2010
- All new central government tender documents for contracts over £10,000 to be published on a single website from September 2010, with this information to be made available to the public free of charge, and
- All new central government contracts to be published in full from January 2011.
The Public Sector Transparency Board, which is part of the Cabinet Office and chaired by Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude, is overseeing delivery of the transparency agenda.
