§ Mr. Masonasked the Postmaster-General who are the parties to the 1963 Bulk Supply Agreements; and what are the terms of these two Agreements.
§ Mr. BevinsThe two Bulk Supply Agreements currently in force relate to telephone apparatus and telephone exchange equipment. The following are the parties:
Telephone Apparatus Agreement
Associated Electrical Industries Ltd.
Automatic Telephone & Electric Co. Ltd.
Ericsson Telephones Ltd.
Phoenix Telephones Ltd.
Standing Telephones and Cables Ltd.
Telephone Manufacturing Co. Ltd.
The General Electric Co. Ltd.
The Plessey Co. (U.K.) Ltd.
Telephone Exchange Equipment Agreement
Associated Electrical Industries Ltd.
Automatic Telephone & Electric Co.Ltd.
Ericsson Telephones Ltd.
Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd.
The General Electric Co. Ltd.
The terms of the agreements can be summarised as follows:
- 1. For the period of the agreement (5 years) the Post Office undertakes (subject to certain reservations which are set out below) to place all its orders for the particular products with the group of contractors who are party to the agreement.
- 2. The contractors nominate one of their members to undertake each individual order, and confirm the required delivery date. Generally, the Post Office accepts the nomination made.
52 - 3. Patents held by the contractors are pooled.
- 4. All the contractors receive the same price rates for the goods supplied or services rendered.
- 5. Basic prices (subject to adjustment in respect of variations in rates of wages and the cost of materials) are fixed in the agreement for the first two and a half years. They will be replaced for the second two and a half years by new basic prices negotiated after cost investigation at various contractors' works selected by the Post Office.
- 6. The Post Office reserves the right to manufacture apparatus and equipment in its own factories.
- 7. The Post Office reserves the right to contract with anybody for the manufacture and supply of apparatus or equipment which embodies some new principle or method of working and is intended to be used for experimental purposes. Apparatus or equipment so supplied for experimental purposes may be used for the public service,
- 8. The Post Office reserves the right to enter into a contract with anybody for manufacture and supply if this, in the opinion of the Postmaster-General, would advance the interests of the country's export trade.
- 9. The Post Office reserves the right to place a given percentage (25 per cent,for telephone apparatus; 10 per cent, for telephone exchange equipment) of its orders with non-signatories to the agreement.