First cross-government procurement deal 'will save £21m'

14 Jul 11
Whitehall’s first centrally procured service will save more than £20m, ministers have claimed.
By Richard Johnstone | 14 July 2011

Whitehall’s first centrally procured service will save more than £20m, ministers have claimed.

Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude announced yesterday that the contract for cross-government print services – which will replace 140 separate deals – was the first sign of ‘radical changes to procurement’ that are now taking place.

Under the new deal, negotiated by Government Procurement, the Revenue & Customs print contract will be available to all government departments, saving £21m. Supplier Williams Lea will act as a central supply chain manager for government.

The Cabinet Office said the contract would lead to a standardisation and rationalisation of products and processes, as well as minimising exposure to volatile commodity prices.

Maude said this represented a ‘good start’ to the work of Government Procurement, a Whitehall team set up lastmonth to negotiate contracts for widely used goods and services for the whole of government at a single price.

He added: ‘We need to challenge traditional procurement thinking and make a significant step-up in capability if we are to deliver on the challenges ahead of us.’

John Collington, the government’s chief procurement officer, said: ‘It is exciting to see that the reform of government procurement is swiftly progressing and only last month we announced the formation of Government Procurement. This new print contract is the first of a number of central deals we are putting in place over the coming year. It shows government departments are utilising the expertise within their teams to support our reform and delivering real change along with significant savings.’

Revenue & Customs commercial director Dave Thomas added: ‘My team is extremely pleased to be managing the contract on behalf of government. HMRC have been heading in this strategic direction for the last three years and the benefits of the contract align perfectly with the Government Procurement agenda.’

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