§ Sir Ian Gilmourasked the Secretary of State for Defence what is his Department's policy towards the encouragement of competition in equipment procurement; what steps are taken to ensure that no attempt is made to restrict competition; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonIt is our policy to seek competition wherever reasonable and practicable in order to achieve the best value for money in defence procurement. It is not in our interest to restrict competition, though we have a clear responsibility not to564W waste industry's or the Ministry's resources by inviting more bids than can adequately be assessed or by encouraging bids which have no reasonable prospect of success.