The UK spends almost double the rest of the EU combined on large procurement contracts, and much less on smaller ones, research finds.
- The United Kingdom published 167 contract award notices on contracts worth €100 million or above.
- France published 29, Italy 25 and Germany 5.
- These are worth altogether €73.77 billion and accounted for 52 per cent of such notices published in 2015.
- Outsourcing titans continue to dominate public procurement despite well-publicised failures.
Our new report examines the state of public procurement in the UK and finds that despite government ambitions to get more small and medium-sized businesses to win public contracts, the UK awarded more contracts of €100 million or more than any other EU country, and almost six times the number published by France, the next highest.
This has left the UK over-reliant on outsourcing to very large companies like Capita, Atos, G4S, and Serco.
This has left the UK over-reliant on outsourcing to very large companies like Capita, Atos, G4S, and Serco.
Commenting on the findings, Jan Zeber, Policy Analyst at the TaxPayers' Alliance and author of the report, said:
"From staplers to warships, public procurement regularly accounts for approximately a third of total public spending. It is therefore crucial that value for taxpayers is at the heart of all public-sector purchasing decisions, no matter whether it's a multi-million-pound military vessel or stationery for the Cabinet Office. The report outlines a number of positive steps which can be taken to improve the procurement process by saving money and increasing efficiency."
TPA spokesmen are available for live and pre-recorded broadcast interviews via 07795 084 113 (no texts)