Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 February 2004
242 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to the investigation being carried out by the British Office of Fair Trade in relation to competition in Government procurement spending; if a similar investigation is being carried out here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4824/04]
View answerI understand that the UK Office of Fair Trading intends reviewing how public sector procurement is affecting competition. The review will focus on access for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to the public procurement market. My Department has no plans to conduct a similar review at present.
My Department is responsible for the national public procurement website, etenders.gov.ie, which is the national public procurement opportunities website. It is the key reference point for suppliers and service providers, including SMEs, wishing to do business with the public sector. As the number of registered suppliers continues to increase I would expect SMEs to gain more access to public sector procurement opportunities, going forward.
