ACE has endorsed the thrust of one of the biggest shake-ups of public procurement for many years.  The government’s green paper Transforming Public Procurement proposes to simplify and rationalise the way public procurement is undertaken.  Its key proposals include:

• Rationalising procurement legislation.
• Reducing the number of types of public procurement procedures to three.
• Limiting closed frameworks to four years duration with a further four years allowed if new entrants are permitted to join during that second period at prearranged points.
• Measures to encourage contracting authorities to adopt a wider definition of value so that procurement is no longer skewed towards lowest cost outcomes outcome regardless of wider consequences.
• Making it easier for past performance to be taken into account in contract awards.

ACE Director of Policy Matthew Farrow said: "With nearly 40% of ACE members business coming from public sector work getting public sector procurement right is crucial.  In particular measures to broaden the way value is perceived must be implemented as they could enable members to do what they do best creating win-wins for clients and local community."

"We also support the measures to improve procurement frameworks.  Implemented well, with honesty on both sides about the amount of work likely to flow from them and an understanding of the costs involved in bidding for them, frameworks are an important tool."

A copy of the ACE response can be downloaded here.  

ACE also contributed to the Construction Leadership Council response which can be viewed here.