Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether, whether his Department considers the extent to which a bidder’s business is based in the United Kingdom, and the proportion of its workforce that is employed in the United Kingdom as factors in the evaluation and award process for public procurement contracts..

Contracts awarded under the Procurement Act 2023 which are considered to be below threshold (where the total value of a contract for goods and services is less than £135,018 including VAT) can already be reserved to UK-based suppliers, or suppliers based in specific regions.

The Government is determined to ensure the £400 billion of public money spent on public procurement annually delivers economic growth and supports British businesses. Last year we consulted on a range of procurement reforms and will publish our response imminently.

When considering whether to reserve contracts to UK-based suppliers the Cabinet Office will take into account the current market for the goods/services being bought, and undertake supplier due diligence.