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Procurement: Manufacturing Industries

Volume 456: debated on Tuesday 6 February 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to ensure that procurement by Government Departments supports innovation within UK manufacturing; and if he will make a statement. (118413)

To ensure high quality public services, value for money and spending in an efficient way, the Government need to maximise the opportunities that businesses, including UK manufacturing companies, can offer through their commercial expertise and ability to innovate. The Government have made significant improvements in their procurement capability in recent years and a further major package of reforms to transform Government procurement was announced recently. In addition, the Government set out a programme of work to promote the use of innovation in public procurement in its Innovation Report (2003) and DTI’s Five Year Programme (2004), which is still continuing. This includes fostering the innovation and creativity of small businesses through the Small Business Research Initiative.