House of Commons debates local government procurement report
2 July 2014
MPs debate the Communities and Local Government Select Committee's report on local government procurement on Thursday 3 July 2014.
The debate will take place in Westminster Hall and will begin after the conclusion of the debate on the extremism and instability in North and West Africa.
- Parliament TV: Watch the debate
- Report: Local government procurement (PDF 489 KB)
- Report: Local government procurement
- Government response: Local government procurement (PDF 219 KB)
- Second Special report: Local government procurement
- Inquiry: Local government procurement
- Communities and Local Government Committee
The report, published in March, has 29 conclusions and recommendations for the local government sector and its central government, third and private sector partners. Its publication followed an in-depth inquiry launched in October 2013 which prompted some 70 written submissions, with oral evidence taken from over 30 witnesses both in London and Sheffield.
The Committee's report aims its recommendations at the local government sector itself, supporting a localist approach, with councils empowered to lead action for their own communities.
The report: main findings
- Local government spends some £45 billion – around a quarter of its annual expenditure – on procuring goods and services from third parties.
- The Committee examined, against a background of financial constraint for councils and their communities, how successfully councils across the country were delivering value for money and meeting other local objectives in their procurement spend.
- The report noted evidence of much good progress. Many local authorities are working to improve their procurement operations in order to:
- cut council costs and reduce the burdens on those doing business with them;
- strengthen links with delivery of community objectives;
- improve risk management; and
- reduce fraud.
- However, the report expresses reservations about the patchy performance of councils across the country. Many councils are not operating their procurement at optimum levels. The report recommends how the sector and its partners, including central government, can ensure all councils step-up their efforts and commit to delivering first class procurement.
- The Committee supported a localist approach – giving councils freedom to tailor their approaches to local needs. The report did not support the view that procurement must be centralised or that central Government must step in and compel local authorities to collaborate. Rather, the Committee urges the sector itself to take the lead.
- The report includes conclusions on: tackling over-burdensome processes, such as Pre-Qualification Questionnaires; on addressing social, economic and environmental objectives through procurement, on reducing fraud and improving transparency; and on uprating procurement skills of staff right across council functions.
The Local Government Association (LGA) published a response to the report in May outlining extensive action being taken by the local government sector itself on key areas tackled in the report.The Government response to the Committee’s report was published in June.