§ Sir John Tilneyasked the Minister of State for Defence how many Royal Fleet Auxiliaries have been refitted so far in 1973, and in how many of these refits was the lowest tender accepted.
§ Mr. BuckA total of 20 contracts for the refit of Royal Fleet Auxiliaries was awarded by the Ministry of Defence to ship repair yards in the United Kingdom during the period 1st January to 5th October 1973. Each contract was awarded following competitive tendering. In two cases it was necessary to accept the second lowest tender because the firm offering the lowest price was involved in industrial difficulties and could not complete the work in time to meet operational requirements. In all other cases the lowest tender was accepted.