New government procurement feedback service for Small Businesses
The government has opened a new online feedback facility to enable suppliers to share their public procurement stories. The service is aimed at SMEs, so would be relevant for most third sector organisations to also use. The intention seems to be to open up a direct way for suppliers to tell central government about ‘barriers’ and ‘red tape’ to securing contracts.
The Cabinet Office will publish a quarterly commentary on the issues that have been highlighted and the actions they propose to address them. So far there are around 30 comments from suppliers covering themes many will be familiar with such as the length of paperwork, size of turnover, use of jargon, insurance and risk.
Feedback can be left on the Number 10 website.
The online facility is for general comments on how procurement processes could be improved, rather than specific processes. For providers with concerns over specific tendering problems, NAVCA has a guide to your options.
