| Forum Aims to Simplify Public Procurement |
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| Thursday, 28 May 2009 19:18 |
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The following article was published in the Sunday Business Post, May 3rd 2009. Founded in 1996 in Cork, the purpose of the Forum on Public Procurement (FPP) is to provide an interface between public sector buyers from across the entire Irish public sector and suppliers of products, services or works. In 2008, public sector buyers spent e15 billion, representing a huge proportion of the national public expenditure.  "The FPP identifies the ways and means by which public contracts are warded by the different public sector bodies in accordance with the rules of public procurement which are set down in European legislation and Irish government guidelines, which tend to be quite complex for the layman to understand," said Lionel McCarthy, chief executive of the FPP. We try to cut through the complexity. On the supplier side, we help them to understand their rights and to understand the various rules under which public bodies are obliged to act, and to explain the mode of access to public contracts. For example, all public ontracts are subject to European principles because the purpose of the internal market is to provide access to public contracts to the various suppliers on an equal footing." The forum has introduced a number to initiatives to help the buyers and suppliers. The ethics charter was introduced to ensure there is a level playing pitch and to eliminate any fears that suppliers might have to supply any unnecessary supports "We have also produced a charter on debriefing so that suppliers are given explanations as to why they didn’t win a particular contract," said McCarthy. "We provide the suppliers with advice in the event that public bodies fail to carry out their obligations. The Irish public sector bodies are doing their verybest to supply access to contracts in the fairest most balanced way they can. The public sector buyer carries a heavy burden in terms of adherence to rules and regulations in relation to advertising contracts, writing specifications, selecting tender lists, specifying the various criteria to be included in the documents and then evaluating all the tenders in the fairest way possible for the best outcome. An added difficulty in today’s environment is the reduced availability of funds, which means the public sector buyer is trying to get better value than ever before and trying to ensure he benchmarks his prices with those of his fellow buyers in other public sector areaswhere possible. The public sector buyer has an opportunity within the forum to share his opportunities and experiences and to develop best practice in accordance with the practices of his colleagues. A new piece of remedies legislation will be enacted shortly which extends the range of penalties placed on public bodies bringing in a new concept known as 'ineffectiveness of contract', that adds even further to the burden placed on public sector buyers,who will have to adhere to rules that are far more stringent than those governing private bodies." The FPP deals with a lot of these limitations by providing an opportunity for people involved in buying and supplying to public sector projects to meet in a non-threatening environment inorder to exchange views, to achieve best practice and to develop an understanding of each other’s difficulties and limitations and to come to terms with the procedures that have to be met. |
| Last Updated on Friday, 29 May 2009 03:06 |