Small firms encouraged to go online to win public contracts

Companies now have free access to bid for contracts up to a value of £100,000 on government website

11 August 2009 15:33

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The government’s decision to scrap access charges on its public sector contract website has been welcomed by business lobby group the Forum of Private Business (FPB).

Companies now have free visibility of contracts up to a value of £100,000 on www.supply2gov.uk after a policy of charging a maximum of £180 per year was discontinued last week.

The move follows recommendations made in the Glover review of public procurement, which was published in November last year.

The review found that public sector buyers are missing out on innovation and savings because too few small businesses are able to access contracts.

Tim Williams, the FPB's adviser on public sector tendering, is urging business owners to bid for public work in response to the rule change as well as greater levels of investment on public projects.

"Public spending levels are staying constant at the moment and some spending is being brought forward to boost the economy," he says. "There'll be cuts in future years though, so make hay while the sun shines."

Business Minister Shriti Vadera said: "Small businesses are facing significant pressure in this downturn and new contracts are essential for their return to growth.

“We want to support small businesses by making it easier to access the thousands of government procurement opportunities that are directly relevant to them.

"This free service is an interim step along the way to introducing a single website for all public sector contracts next year."

The lobby group is urging the government to fast-track other measures outlined in the Glover review, most of which are not scheduled for implementation until 2010.

One of the recommendations was creating greater transparency in public sector tendering via better advertising and more information, which would be accessible through a single, free-to-use and easy-to-search online portal.

"It's important that the measures put forward in the Glover review move in the right direction as quickly and as effectively as possible.

These measures will help save more small firms from closure and provide a catalyst for economic recovery," said the FPB's policy representative, Matt Goodman.

“Removing the cost barrier to accessing the supply2.gov.uk portal is a significant step towards improving access to public contracts and small businesses should register on the site without delay.”