§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what advice has been given to procurement staff on the implications of purchasing from small and medium enterprises. [6639]
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe Scottish Office purchasing, contracting and supply manual contains advice on purchasing from small and medium enterprises. Copies of the DTI video and accompanying booklet "Think Big, Buy Small" are available to all purchasing divisions.
It is Scottish Office policy to encourage small and medium enterprises to compete for business on an equal footing with larger firms when they have the expertise, capacity and financial strength appropriate to the contract being awarded.
§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what work his Department has done to develop best practice in the publication of departmental procurement guidance material relevant to the needs of small and medium enterprises' needs. [6637]
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe Scottish Office has produced a booklet "Selling to The Scottish Office" which is a guide to all suppliers interested in doing business with us. This booklet is available on request and has been widely distributed through chambers of commerce. The Scottish Office also has an entry in the DTI publication "Tendering for Government Contracts" giving a named contact point for suppliers.
Representatives from the Scottish Office have taken part in a number of publicity events organised in conjunction with local enterprise bodies aimed at stimulating the interest of small and medium enterprises in becoming suppliers to the Scottish Office.
§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what progress his Department has made regarding establishing a contact point with responsibility for liaison with relevant business support organisations and taking forward small and medium enterprise related public procurement initiatives. [6712]
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe Scottish Office has a business inquiry point within its purchasing and supply division, which deals with inquiries from all firms interested in doing business with us.
The business inquiry point is continually involved in attending supplier events featuring small and medium enterprises with the next event scheduled for February 1996.
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§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what meetings his Department has had since May 1995 with organisations representing small firms to review tendering procedures.[6638]
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonA representative from the Scottish Office was unable to attend the meeting held by Treasury's central unit on procurement in September 1995 but we have received full details of the discussions.
§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland 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. [6658]
§ Lord James Douglas-Hamilton[holding answer 18 December 1995]: Prior to the review the Scottish Office already had in place a number of measures dealing with small firms and these have been enhanced over the last year. Information has been made available to small firms through our "Selling to The Scottish Office" booklet, establishment of the business inquiry point, updating our entry in the DTI publication "Tendering for Government Contracts" and through attendance at local supplier events.