§ Sir Peter TapsellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress is being made in relation to the enforcement of the competition provisions of the Local Government Act 1988.
§ Mr. Heathcoat-AmoryMy right hon. Friend has today issued directions under section 14 of the Local Government Act 1988 requiring both East Lindsey district council and Knowsley metropolitan borough council to expose refuse collection work to competitive tendering again by July 1991. He has taken this action because he is not satisfied with the responses which these authorities made to the notices issued under section 13 of the Act.
The notices issued to both authorities set out his belief that they had acted contrary to the requirement of section 7(7) of the Act, which is that, in awarding a contract, they must not
act in a manner having the effect or intended or likely to have the effect of restricting, distorting or preventing competition",in that they had assigned refuse collection work to their own direct service organisations when they had received a lower-priced bid from a private contractor.