Public Procurement Inquiry launched
20 October 2010
The House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee, under the chairmanship of Lord Krebs, is conducting an inquiry into the Government’s use of procurement as a tool to stimulate innovation within industry. The inquiry will focus in particular on the Department for Transport and its related public bodies, as a working example of the current procurement practices within departments. However relevant evidence is welcomed on examples of procurement practices from other departments, and on the overarching role of procurement as a tool to stimulate innovation.
The inquiry seeks to investigate the extent to which the current procurement practices and processes in place are effective in encouraging innovation within industry and supporting the development and diffusion of innovations. It will focus on:
- The role of public procurement as a tool for stimulating commercially valuable innovation within industry
- The success or failure of current public procurement processes, mechanisms and tools in stimulating innovation within industry
- Potential mechanisms and processes for stimulating innovation in industry through public procurement, and any relevant comparisons overseas
- The impact of departmental and other government structures, processes and cultures on the use of procurement as an innovation tool, and cross-government and departmental efforts to co-ordinate and reconcile conflicts between policy objectives.
See the full Call for Evidence for the list of questions