§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the outcome of his Department's review of measures taken to facilitate small firms' access to appropriate areas of Government procurement in the light of best practice. [6663]
§ Mr. HoramIt is not the Department's policy to discriminate in favour of large or small companies when letting contracts. The Department's tendering process includes an invitation to all companies, no matter what their size, to bid for departmental contracts. Their bids are subjected to an objective evaluation and the firm offering the best value for money is awarded the contract. A review of these procedures is not, therefore, necessary.