§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what progress her 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. [6718]
§ Mr. Sproat[holding answer 19 December 1995]: My Department and its two agencies have decided that because of their relatively small expenditure on goods and services it would not be worth while to have a separate contact point for small and medium enterprises.
§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what work her Department has done to develop best practice in the publication of departmental procurement guidance material relevant to the needs of small and medium enterprises. [6619]
§ Mr. Sproat[holding answer 19 December 1995]: My Department maintains an entry in the Government publication, "Tendering for Government Contracts" which advises small and medium enterprises on procurement procedures and lists procurement contact points. A copy of this publication is available in the House Library.
§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what advice has been given to procurement staff 65W on the implications of purchasing from small and medium enterprises. [6621]
§ Mr. Sproat[holding answer 19 December 1995]: The following guidance has been issued to the procurement staff in my Department and its agencies:
Size may be relevant to the selection of tenderers, but only insofar as it is necessary to assess whether or not the task is within their capability. Once that assessment has been made, relative size is likely to be less significant than skills, efficiency, experience, and reliability—characteristics relevant to value for money and just as likely to be found in small firms as in large and particularly relevant in the procurement of services".