Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Edward Argar and Priti Patel

Wednesday 14th September 2016 Commons Chamber

[Edward Argar (Charnwood) (Con)]

5. What steps her Department is taking to ensure value for money in its aid budget.

[The Secretary of State for International Development (Priti Patel)]

My predecessors in Government have made huge progress in improving British aid by creating an independent aid watchdog, introducing much tougher value-for-money controls and making DFID’s spending even more transparent.

[Edward Argar]

Can my right hon. Friend reassure me that in seeking value for money she will also ensure that British companies and organisations are able to tender competitively for all DFID contracts at home and abroad, and are not in any way disadvantaged when bidding against overseas companies?

[Priti Patel]

My hon. Friend makes a very important point. He will know of, and be familiar with, the regulations on procurement, but I want to assure him and the House that British firms and British small and medium-sized enterprises win a significant proportion of our work. In the last financial year, 74% of our supplier spend was with UK firms.