Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 October 2023
170. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform the degree to which public procurement, and reform thereto, continues to be part of Government policy, with particular reference to the need to ensure maximum economic benefit while maintaining good procurement practice and indigenous resourcing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47234/23]
View answerAll public bodies are obliged to spend or invest public funds with care, and to ensure that optimal value for money is obtained in accordance with the Public Spending Code which sets out the rules and procedures to ensure that these standards are upheld across the Irish public service.
Public procurement directives apply to all Member States within the European Union. The aim of these regulations is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime that delivers best value for money. The legislative basis for public procurement in Ireland is fully aligned with regulatory norms throughout the EU.
Public procurement reform is a key aspect of the overall public service reform programme. The Office of Government Procurement was established in 2013 to:
1. Ensure that the Public Service speak with one voice to the market for each category of expenditure, providing administrative savings, process efficiencies and eliminating duplication of effort across Public Service Bodies and economic operators (suppliers).
2. To leverage the scale of Public Procurement, aggregating the State’s buying power, establishing central buying solutions that deliver value for money, and provide for the inclusion of Government’s horizontal policy objectives.
3. To integrate Procurement policy, strategy, and operations into one office, delivering a cohesive set of policies.
4. To strengthen spend analytics and data management to provide greater transparency and reporting on spend management, and identifying new opportunities to deliver value for money.
The Procurement Reform Programme has achieved considerable success to date. Governance arrangements have been established to foster collaboration and cooperation across the main sectors of Central Government, Health, Local Government, Education and Defence. Through the development of a suite of centralised arrangements, the Government’s purchasing power has been leveraged by speaking to the market with ‘one voice’.
In line with the Programme for Government: Our Shared Future, the focus now is to further develop the potential of strategic procurement, with an emphasis on sustainability and social considerations, public works reform and innovation. While value for money remains a key consideration, the strategic use of public procurement will support green, social and innovation policies in line with the Programme for Government, international developments and EU priorities such as the Green Deal and digitalisation.
Each Accounting Officer is responsible for the performance of public contracts under his or her remit and for ensuring that the public procurement function is discharged in line with the standard accounting and procurement rules and procedures efficiently and effectively to deliver maximum value for money for the taxpayer.
To assist contracting authorities in the conduct of procurement procedures, the Office of Government Procurement has published extensive guidance material for contracting authorities including the Public Procurement Guidelines for Goods and Services (the Guidelines), available at www.gov.ie/en/publication/c23f5-public-procurement-guidelines-for-goods-and-services/, and the Capital Works Management Framework (CWMF), available at: www.gov.ie/en/service/1d443-capital-works-management-framework/#.
The Guidelines outline the various stages of the procurement process from specification, selection and award stages to contract management stage. They provide comprehensive guidance on ensuring the specifications fully and accurately capture the requirement of the goods or services and identify the risks of poor specification and the challenges that this can cause contracting authorities when subsequently managing their contracts.
The OGP has also been proactive in the area of Strategic Procurement with the publication of Circular 20/2019: Promoting the use of Environmental and Social Considerations in Public Procurement and the Information Note on Incorporating Social Considerations into Public Procurement. The interdepartmental Strategic Procurement Advisory Group was established in March 2019 to promote and facilitate the incorporation of sustainable procurement considerations, including environmental considerations, into public procurement projects. The OGP developed a new online GPP Criteria Search tool in November 2022 which will assist all public bodies in meeting their green procurement objectives.
Procurement Reform has delivered a programme of policy supports for SMEs, most recently with the publication of Circular 05/2023: Initiatives to assist SMEs in Public Procurement. This Circular provides measures to promote SME participation in public procurement competitions. Furthermore, my colleague, Minister of State Ossian Smyth TD, chairs the SME Advisory Group which provides a forum for Small Medium Enterprises to discuss procurement issues for the SME sector and to build awareness in industry of the opportunities arising from public procurement.
With respect to public works the Capital Works Management Framework (CWMF) contributes to efficiencies through standardising the documentation and processes associated with public works procurement to the greatest extent possible. There is a suite of guidance material covering all aspects of project delivery, including project-specific information, available under the CWMF.
My Department will continue the enhancement and refinement of guidance, systems, reporting, and engagement to assist public procurement practitioners to effectively and efficiently deliver value for money on behalf of the State.
