Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 10 October 2012
12. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the impact on small local enterprises from the centralisation of procurement within the public service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43394/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn light of the need to accelerate the reform agenda, late last year my Department published the Public Service Reform Plan. This plan identified procurement reform as a key instrument that can assist the public service to deliver services in an efficient manner.
The National Procurement Service (NPS) has put in place a number of national arrangements designed to secure better value for money from leveraging the public service’s buying power in relation to a range of goods and services that are commonly purchased across the public service. These national arrangements have benefits that include: cash savings; administrative savings from reduced duplication of tendering; greater purchasing expertise; improved consistency; and enhanced service levels. In some instances the take up of the NPS arrangements has been low. In order to increase the usage of the NPS arrangements and thereby secure best value for money, the Government decided that it should be mandatory for public service bodies to use specified national procurement arrangements.
My Department recently issued Circular 06/12 that implements the Government decision by making it a mandatory requirement that public service bodies avail of specified national arrangements put in place by the NPS. The list of categories subject to national procurement arrangements includes: electricity; natural gas; stationery and office supplies; paper; ICT consumables; managed print services; print media advertising; and motor vehicles. These national arrangements will secure best value for money and facilitate contracting authorities to maintain the delivery of services in the context of tighter budgetary constraints.
The Government recently agreed to the establishment of a National Procurement Office under the aegis of my Department. This Office will integrate procurement policy, strategy, training, and operations in one office. The primary objectives of the Office will be to improve public procurement capacity across the public service and to deliver increased value for money.
In order to encourage greater SME participation in public procurement as outlined in Circular 10/10, the National Procurement Service (NPS) recently established a Working Group on Small & Medium Enterprises to respond to public procurement issues arising for SMEs. The Working Group consists of representatives from the NPS, the Health Service Executive, the Irish Business and Employers Federation, the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association, Chambers Ireland, and the Small Firms Association. The Working Group will develop measures to highlight the scope that contracting authorities have under Circular 10/10 to encourage SME participation in public procurement processes. The National Procurement Service, as part of its education and development remit, also has an active programme to assist SMEs in how to participate effectively in the public service procurement process. To date the NPS has facilitated workshops and presented at seminars to over 3,000 SMEs nationwide. The next event in this programme will be a major 'Meet the Buyer' event in Kilkenny in November at which it is anticipated more than 400 SMEs will attend.
While a number of the categories of goods and services mandated under the Circular are suited to single supplier national arrangements – for example the supply of energy or gas - it should not be taken that single supplier frameworks are to be accepted as the norm. The greater use where appropriate of multi-supplier frameworks – for example the supply of managed print services- can address local supplier issues while also ensuring ongoing cost competitiveness of the framework itself. Such multi-supplier frameworks may also offer SMEs the opportunity to participate in national level contracts, thereby offering valuable reference work when competing for public procurement contracts in other jurisdictions.
