Source · National Audit Office

Lessons learned: competition in public procurement

Published: 19 Jul 2023 Recommendations: 6 Type: Value for Money NAO confirmed: 6

NAO report detail with recommendations, government responses, and any Public Accounts Committee follow-up.

nao.org.uk →

Recommendations

6 items

6 accepted 6 in progress

Rec	Recommendation	Addressee	Acceptance	Implementation
1	Building on work it has begun to update its contract database systems and standards, clearly define the information departments are required to publish, including how it should be structured Ref Page 12, 20a · Implemented Autumn 2024	Cabinet Office	Accepted	In progress ✓ NAO
2	Through its procurement reform processes, act to improve the quality of information departments submit on contracts, as well as continuing to improve compliance with transparency requirements. Ref Page 12, 20b · Implemented Autumn 2024	Cabinet Office	Accepted	In progress ✓ NAO
3	Set out how it currently uses the information and explore how it can the use the range of data collected on individual contracts to analyse competitive trends in markets and use this to support its work. Ref Page 12, 20c · Implemented Autumn 2024	Cabinet Office	Accepted	In progress ✓ NAO
4	Work with departments to understand the barriers to early market engagement and take steps to address them. Ref Page 12, 20d · Implemented Autumn 2024	Cabinet Office	Accepted	In progress ✓ NAO
5	Consider how to make improvements in the supporting elements of the commercial lifecycle as set out in Figure 6 (capability, commercial strategy, governance and accountability, and transparency and data) to support improvements in the effectiveness of competition. Ref Page 13, 20f · Implemented Autumn 2024	Cabinet Office	Accepted	In progress ✓ NAO
6	Expand its guidance on frameworks, alongside working to ensure that where frameworks are used it is for compatible requirements and uses competitive pressure. Ref Page 13, 20e · Implemented Autumn 2024	Cabinet Office	Accepted	In progress ✓ NAO

Public Accounts Committee follow-up

1 report

The Public Accounts Committee examined this NAO report and published its own recommendations. The government responds to PAC recommendations via Treasury Minutes.

13 Dec 2023 Public Accounts C… Sixth Report - Competition in public procurement — 12 recommendations · parliament.uk