§ Mr. BoatengTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what progress has been made on the local county court system under the private finance initiative. [35744]
Mr. John M. TaylorThe question concerns a specific operational matter on which the chief executive of the Court Service is best placed to provide an answer and I have accordingly asked the chief executive to reply direct.
1303WLetter from M. D. Huebner to Mr. Paul Boateng, dated 19 July 1995:
The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, has asked me to reply to your Question about progress on the local county court system under the Private Finance Initiative.The Court Service's requirement for the provision of information system services to county courts was advertised in the Official Journal of the European Community on 16 May 1995 under reference 95/S92–46794/EN. Potential suppliers were advised that the requirement was considered suitable for the application of the Private Finance Initiative. Thirty suppliers responded and were sent a detailed Statement of Operational Requirements. Initial proposals were subsequently received from a number of suppliers and these are being evaluated, prior to the announcement of a shortlist. The procurement exercise is being conducted under the EC Services Directive Negotiated Procedures. We expect to award a contract to commence in June 1996.