§ Mr. GrayTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the suppliers with whom Inland Revenue held discussions with regard to the Inland Revenue ASPIRE programme; whether bidders for the ASPIRE programme had been subject to an Inland Revenue compliance investigation in the previous three years;
96Wand what tax and interest recoveries had been made from the potential bidders for the ASPIRE programme. [125019]
§ Dawn PrimaroloThe Inland Revenue had discussions with a large number of potential suppliers in the early stages of the ASPIRE competition who expressed an interest in bidding for the contract. These bidders were reduced to a short-list of BT plc, Cap Gemini Ernst & Young and EDS in July 2002. As part of the development of their bids these three suppliers formed consortia with the following:
BT plc are working with Computer Sciences Corporation and SchlumbergerSema.Cap Gemini Ernst & Young are working with Fujitsu Services.EDS are working with Accenture.The Inland Revenue has had frequent discussions with all seven companies since the short-listed bidders were announced.
A provision in the ASPIRE Invitation to Tender (ITT) allowed the Inland Revenue to undertake a review of the tax affairs of the companies that responded to the ITT. These reports were used as a factor in the ASPIRE evaluation.