Contents
Report 7 of the 14 March 2011 meeting of the Resources and Productivity Sub-committee, sets out the summary of requests for contract action received in Procurement Services within the last quarter.
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Requests for contract action – management information
Report: 7
Date: 14 March 2011
By: Director of Resources on behalf of the Commissioner
Summary
This report sets out the summary of requests for contract action received in Procurement Services within the last quarter (October 2010 - December 2010), with a particular focus on the requests that fall under the remit of Single Tender Actions (STA) and submitted via the associated form 1049. The report provides details of compliance with EU Procurement law and the MPA Contract Regulations by providing members with information on the number of requests for STAs against each of the legal exemption types and provides a summary of the number and value of those approved and declined. The ‘exempt’ detailed in Appendix 1.
A. Recommendations
That members
-
note the summary of competed tenders received in the third quarter of 2010/11 and the control of single tender exemptions through Procurement Services and the MPA.
note that further updates will continue to be provided to the Resources and Productivity Sub-Committee on a quarterly basis.
B. Supporting information
1. Members have previously agreed the content and presentation format of the Contract Action - Management Information report, on a quarterly basis, to afford them the opportunity to have sight of contracting activity that is not competed, but undertaken compliantly with EU Procurement law and MPA Regulations. The report (“Update on the control of Single Tender Actions”) was last presented to the MPA Resources and Productivity Sub-Committee on 6th December 2010
2. Requests for Contract Action - This management information report will continue to be presented to Members on a quarterly basis. The next update will be issued on 13th June 2011 to the Resources and Productivity Sub-Committee.
Management Information
3. A variation to the CapGemini contract was approved by the Authority on 22nd April 2010 and processed that month. This does not form part of data in tables 1 and 2 for reporting purposes, as the high value of the variation would skew the results. For further information, see Appendix 1 - Exempt.
4. Table 1 details the number of requests by month for contract action (Form 1049) received since April 2009.
Table 1 - Requests for contract action
| 2009/10 | 2010/11 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Value - £m | Number | Value - £m | |
| April | 41 | 14.3 | 58 | (5) 40.4 |
| May | 57 | 27.5 | 56 | 27.1 |
| June | 94 | 16.5 | 75 | (6) 46.7 |
| July | 117 (1) | 70.1 | 47 (7) | 33.2 |
| August | 92 | 27.5 | 61 (7) | 30.4 |
| September | 116 (1) | 22.4 | 68 (7) | 15.9 |
| October | 98 | 61.9 | 79(14) | (14) 30.7 |
| November | 78 | 41.9 | 92(14) | (14) 48.7 |
| December | 87 | (2) 149.4 | 49(14) | (14) 19.2 |
| January | 96 | 71.5 | ||
| February | 107 | (3) 134.7 | ||
| March | 97 | (4) 12.7 | ||
Notes
(1)-(4) Comments were reported in ‘Request for Contract Action - Management Information report’ dated 5th July 2010.
(5)-(6) Comments were reported in ‘Request for Contract Action - Management Information report’ dated 13 September 2010.
(7) Comments were reported in’ Request for Contract Action - Management Information report’ dated 6 December 2010.
(14) In comparison with the same quarter period of 2009/10 there is a 17% reduction in the overall number of requests for contract action. In the same period the overall value also reduced but by a greater amount of 62%. We believe in part to 2010/11 budget constraints and reduced capital expenditure. Most notably in the 2009/10 period a number of high value 1049’s were associated with key investment projects particularly for DoI and the Olympics such as Corporate Print, Digital CCTV & Firewall projects and PDA. These four (4) alone represented £66m in total during that period.
5. Table 2 details the number of requests processed by month for variations or extensions to existing contracts since April 2009. These outline where a non- competitive approach has been taken by virtue of the fact they were either a variation or an extension to an existing contract.
Table 2 - Number and Value of Variations and Extensions processed
| 2009/10 | 2010/11 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Value - £m | Number | Value - £m | |
| April | 3 | 0.1 | 31 | 3.9 |
| May | 31 | 1.9 | 27 | 3.5 |
| June | 41 | 3.2 | 24 | 4.2 |
| July | 42 | 6.7 | 19 | 2.4 |
| August | 32 | 3.2 | 24 | (11) 5.1 |
| September | 65 (8) | (9) 18.3 | 23 | 3.1 |
| October | 35 | 4.6 | 22(15) | (15) 19.6 |
| November | 14 | 2.2 | 27(15) | (15) 15.1 |
| December | 28 | (10) 12.4 | 15(15) | (15) 1.1 |
| January | 38 | 6.4 | ||
| February | 26 | 1.7 | ||
| March | 60 | 4.8 | ||
Notes
(8)-(10) Comments were reported in ‘Request for Contract Action - Management Information report’ dated 5th July 2010.
(11) Comments were reported in ‘Request for Contract Action - Management Information report’ dated 6th December 2010.
(15) Within the quarter, by comparison with 2009/10 the 1049 volumes reduced by 17%. In the same period there was a 46% increase in the overall value sourced through Variations or Extensions. This may in part be a consequence of earlier engagement at requirements gathering stage meaning Procurement is now better placed to advice on existing contracts, which may offer greater value for money and preferential contract terms with the added benefit of improved contract compliance.
6. Table 3 details the number of single tender actions processed by month since April 2009. These outline where a non-competitive approach has been taken by virtue of the fact that they were Single Tender Actions (STA).
Table 3 - Single tender actions processed
| 2009/10 | 2010/11 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Value - £m | Number | Value - £m | |
| April | 14 | 1.1 | 15 | 0.9 |
| May | 22 | 3.4 | 21 | (13) 5.2 |
| June | 15 | 1.7 | 19 | 2.6 |
| July | 28 | 1.4 | 15 | 0.7 |
| August | 18 | 1.1 | 21 | 0.9 |
| September | 33 | 3.3 | 35 | 2.2 |
| October | 26 | 4.6 | 34(16) | (16) 1.7 |
| November | 16 | 0.7 | 44(16) | (16) 15.5 |
| December | 26 | 3.2 | 24(16) | (16) 3.1 |
| January | 24 | (12) 12.8 | ||
| February | 20 | 2.0 | ||
| March | 58 | 2.3 | ||
Notes
(12) Comment was reported in ‘Request for Contract Action - Management Information report’ dated 5th July 2010.
(13) Comment was reported in ‘Request for Contract Action - Management Information report’ dated 13 September 2010.
(16) In comparison with the same quarter period of 2009/10 there was a 34% increase of STA’s processed rising from 68 to 102. The total value also increased in the equivalent period rising from £8.5m to £20.3m. The change in value in part due to a small number of high value STA’s including three (3) with a total value of £13.5m, with one (1) other at £0.735m albeit this was subsequently declined. Despite the received value increase, of the £20.34m in total, £16.91m was declined (83%) channelling the value through either existing compliant contracts or competed via frameworks. This in part demonstrates a wider consideration and adoption of frameworks at the strategic planning and sourcing options stage. Of the 102 STA requests, 47 (46%) were declined during the quarter. The (4) four primary STA’s declined are summarised at Appendix 1 - Exempt.
7. Table 4 details the one hundred and two (102) requests for an exemption/ exclusion to competitive tendering (single tender action) considered by Procurement Services during the reporting period. The data in table 4 is broken down by both number and value against each of the exemption types claimed, and indicates whether they were approved or declined.
Table 4 - Single Tender Actions processed during the quarter
| Exemption Types (17) | Number received | Value received | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approved | Declined | Approved - £m | Declined - £m | |
| Absence of appropriate tenders following a previously advertised procurement | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| For technical or artistic reasons, or for reasons connected with protection of exclusive rights, the services, supplier or works may be provided only by a particular provider | 36 | 26 | 1.902 | 5.512 |
| A contract following a previously advertised design contest | 3 | 5 | 0.074 | 0.302 |
| Contract classified as secret, or requires special security measures in accordance with the law, or secrecy is required for the essential interests of the security of the UK | 8 | 5 | 1.197 | 2.352 |
| Additional works or services which were not foreseen at the time of contract award but have now become necessary for the performance of a previously tendered contract | 1 | 1 | 0.010 | 0.038 |
| Work or services similar in nature to that covered by a previous tendered contract and have now become necessary for the performance of that contract | 3 | 8 | 0.025 | 8.650 |
| A genuine unforeseeable event arose which is not attributable to the Authority and competition was impracticable where the urgency of need is such that it did not permit the full procurement process to be carried out | 1 | 0 | 0.049 | 0.000 |
| When goods to be purchased or hired under the contract are to be manufactured solely for the purpose of research, experiment, study or development | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| To take advantage of particularly advantageous terms for the purchase of goods in a closing down sale. | 1 | 0 | 0.110 | 0.000 |
| Replacement goods which can only be sourced from the same contract | 2 | 2 | 0.068 | 0.055 |
| Totals | 55 | 47(16) | (18) 3.435 | (16) 16.909 |
Notes
(17) The above descriptions exemptions have been broken down and taken from the exemptions and exclusion contained within the Public Contract Regulations 2006.
(18) The two (2) highest value STA’s that were approved during the quarter are summarised at Appendix 1 - Exempt. A third STA request of significant value was initially approved but on closer analysis was subsequently competed.
C. Other organisational and community implications
Equality and Diversity Impact
1. There are no specific race, equality or diversity implications arising from this report, but it is notable that equality of opportunity is promoted by competitive tendering processes. This pertains especially to the support of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).
Consideration of MET Forward
2. By ensuring the number of tenders that follow a competitive process is maximised, follow EU Procurement law and MPA Contract Regulations, we support the delivery of the Procurement element of Met Support by improving our infrastructure, driving out waste, improving value for money and concentrating resources on fighting crime
Financial Implications
3. The total value of all contract actions for the reporting quarter period was £98.6m. The value of approved STA’s during this time was £3.43m. The data demonstrates that the vast majority of spend (£95.17m) has been tendered competitively or sourced through variation/ extensions within existing contracts (96.6%) is compliant and, therefore, every effort has been made to achieve value for money in the procurement process.
4. The costs associated with the activities set out above are covered within existing budgets, as approved in the Medium Term Finance Plan. Individual contract actions will be approved through the normal MPS/MPA approval process and any specific savings generated through these individual contracts will be recognised in future Business Group Business Plan submissions.
Legal Implications
5. All contracts are required to be let in accordance with the Public Contract Regulations 2006, EC Treaty principles and the MPA Contract Regulations.
6. MPA/MPS Governance procedures require all contract award reports with a value that exceed £1 million to be submitted for scrutiny and approval to the MPS Management Board, Contracts Board and/ or the MPA. DLS form part of the governance process to ensure compliance with the procurement regime and will address relevant issues within the Legal Implications of the covering report.
7. There are no direct legal implications arising from this report which is submitted as part of the Governance process and for performance monitoring.
Environmental Implications
8. Whilst there may be environmental implications when individual requests for contract actions are processed, no additional environmental implications arise at this stage of management information reporting.
Risk Implications
9. All requests for contract actions have been dealt within appropriate time frame and established procedures, thus reducing the risk of non compliance and supplier challenge to the MPA/ MPS.
D. Background papers
None
E. Contact details
Report authors: Lee Tribe, Director of Procurement Services, Resources Directorate (DoR), MPS
For more information contact:
MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18
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