Overseas Aid (Private Sector Contracts)

Gavin Williamson Excerpts
Monday 11th March 2013

(11 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Justine Greening Portrait Justine Greening
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My hon. Friend is right. Even when we are building up core basic services, the innovation of the private sector has a real role to play, and my Department has sought to tap into that. There is a strategic question about what we need to do for ourselves and what expertise we buy in from outside, but there is no doubt a key role for the private sector to play.

Gavin Williamson Portrait Gavin Williamson (South Staffordshire) (Con)
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Will my right hon. Friend use her position to encourage both her Department and the many aid organisations that it supports and funds to start buying more British-manufactured vehicles? Far too often we see foreign-manufactured vehicles being purchased by aid organisations, even though we all know that the best 4x4s are manufactured in the midlands and have a Land Rover badge on the front of them.

Justine Greening Portrait Justine Greening
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My hon. Friend has made his point, and I am sure that the non-governmental organisations will have been listening to this urgent question and will have taken note accordingly. As I have said, we aim to get best value for the taxpayer, and I am sure that in many cases that best value is indeed British.