§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what guidelines are currently in force in his Department and its executive agencies relating to competitive tendering and the use of single negotiated tenders; on what grounds single negotiated tenders can be used; and what procedures are in place within his Department to ensure that the use of single negotiated tenders in competitive tendering processes is justified in all cases; [22854]
(2) how many contracts for goods or services have been awarded by his Department and its executive agencies on the basis of single negotiated contracts in each of the last three years; if he will list the companies involved and the value of the contract in each case; what percentage this represented of contacts awarded by his Department and its agencies after competitive tendering; and, in each case, why the contracts were awarded on the basis of a single negotiated tender. [22869]
§ Sir Paul BeresfordInformation on the award of individual contracts is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The Department submits the purchase of all goods, materials, services and works to competition wherever possible. Single tender action is used where there is a single source of supply, a need for compatibility, or for one off purchases of very low value. These procedures are set out in the Department's purchasing guide.
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