§ 15. Mr. Boothasked the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion, by number and value, of the consultancy contracts awarded by his Department in the past 12 months were subject to competitive tendering; and what was the total cost.
§ Mr. David HowellFor highway work, consultants are usually appointed from a short list of firms, selected for their expertise, quality of work and general suitability, rather than through formal competitive tendering. This is in accordance with published guidance.
Payments are forecast at £43.6 million for 1982–83. For non-highway work during the last 12 months, eight contracts with a value of some £450,000 were made after interviewing a short list of candidates and 40 contracts, with a value of £1.4 million, were made following an approach to a single firm.