§ Mr. Batisteasked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) whether he has a policy concerning the proportion of procurement contracts which go to small and medium-sized businesses;
553W(2) whether he has a system for monitoring the proportion of procurement contracts which go to small and medium-sized businesses.
§ Mr. LeeMinistry of Defence policy is not to discriminate between large and small firms as such. If a small firm is competent to meet Ministry of Defence requirements, it is given an opportunity to tender for business on equal terms with its larger competitors. The Ministry does not apportion orders so that small firms obtain a predetermined share of defence business. Small firms secure a significant amount of business as subcontractors to prime contractors.
Consequently, there is no requirement to monitor the proportion of equipment contracts that go to small and medium-sized firms. Nevertheless, an exercise is currently in hand to identify the value of direct contracts placed with smaller firms in the present financial year. The results will not present a complete picture, because the sub-contract work obtained by smaller firms would be much more difficult to identify.