29 March 2002
Unison staff at the council welcomed the announcement, after it was revealed that their opposition to Capita's bid might have influenced the evaluation team's decision.
During the consultation period, council staff had raised fears over the quality of services already provided by Capita, such as the operation of the authority's personnel unit.
The call centre forms a key part of the council's customer services initiative. Senior staff are concerned that the council will not be able to provide complex advice through a single office.
Rahul Patel, Westminster's Unison branch officer, said the union still plans to go ahead with a ballot for strike action over the terms and conditions of transferred staff, should the Vertex bid meet the council's conditions.
A spokesman for the council told Public Finance that there was little chance of the call centre initiative stalling.
He said: 'The Capita bid has now been assessed as being non-compliant with the conditions of tendering, but we still expect to make a final decision over the contract in June, with a view to the call centre beginning operations in September.
'If we are not satisfied with the Vertex proposal, we will return to the final two bidders and potentially initiate a further negotiated process.'
PFmar2002
