§ Mr. Simon CoombsTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his Department's policy on the payment of invoices to small and medium-sized businesses.
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§ Mr. Kenneth CarlisleMy Department's policy is to pay all contractors' bills promptly.
The Government accounting manual requires Departments to pay within 30 days of the receipt of goods or on the presentation of a valid invoice. My Department's bill-paying branch seeks to pay such bills within 10 days of receiving a claim from contractors. The majority of bills are paid within seven days.
MOD contractors may submit bills against specific contracts once a month. During 1992 arrangements to allow fortnightly claims will be introduced. I believe that the new arrangements will be welcomed by all contractors no matter what the size of their business.
Miscellaneous bills, that is, those which are not the result of a formal contract, are submitted through MOD branches as they arrive. They are paid weekly and normally payment is made within 10 days.