Financial Secretary to the Treasury, John Healey, has given his backing to the role of the Regional Centres of Excellence (RCEs) as the agents for transforming local government procurement.
He made his comments in a major announcement on the future role of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), the government’s procurement service. The OGC will be a smaller, more focused, higher calibre organisation that will drive transformation through central government and the steps to achieve these goals are set out in the report, Transforming Government Procurement.
The Financial Secretary also recognised the important role of the RCE’s Procurement Programme and the major professional buying organisations (known as the Pro5) which are set to unlock millions of pounds from local government procurement by making excellent deals available to all local authorities.
The announcement signals clear recognition of and confidence in the regional change agents such as the RCEs, a move welcomed by Chief Executives’ Task Force.
David Jenkins, member of the Task Force and Chief Executive of Dorset County Council said, “This is an important announcement because it clarifies and strengthens the role of the RCEs in the transformation of local government procurement. It recognises the significant achievements already made by local authorities: many of the best examples of public procurement come from this sector. It is very encouraging to know that the Regional Centres of Excellence have the confidence of government at the highest level.”
Feb 07
