§ Mr. O'BrienTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action he has taken on representations he has received concerning differential treatment between 481W outside and in-house contractors under the local government compulsory competitive tendering schemes; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. KeyMy right hon. Friend considers all representations about the operation of compulsory competitive tendering. Where they relate the conduct of individual competitive tendering exercises by local authorities, he considers whether there are grounds for the use of his sanction powers under sections 19A and 19B of the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 and sections 13 and 14 of the Local Government Act 1988, and uses them where appropriate.
§ Mr. O'BrienTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has as to the guidelines followed by the Audit Commission in settling the question of local authorities being allowed to undertake work for each other under the compulsory competitive tendering procedure; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. O'BrienTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has as to how many contracts have been put out to tender by local authorities under the provisions of the Local Government Act 1988; and how many contracts were awarded to outside contractors and how many were won in-house under the compulsory competitive tendering schemes.
§ Mr. KeyMy Department does not collect this information, but indications are that the proportion of contracts awarded to external tenderers varies between services, and is highest for building cleaning work, at some 30 per cent.
§ Mr. O'BrienTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will undertake a review of the retendering procedure for the carrying out of additional work to any main contracts under the compulsory competitive tendering scheme for local government; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. KeyWe have no plans to make changes to the regulations made on 19 March 1991 which provided, among other things, that where "other cleaning" work had been assigned to direct service organisations and the cost of additional work to meet the litter duties proposed by the Environmental Protection Act 1990 exceeded 20 per cent. of the cost of the work already being done, the work had to be put out to tender again.
§ Mr. O'BrienTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what amendments have been made to the threshold included in the Local Government Act 1988, for the smaller levels of work carried out in local government under compulsory competitive tendering schemes; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. KeyNo amendments have been made to the de minimis threshold of £100,000, set out in the order made on 29 July 1988—SI No. 1988/1372.