Government Departments: Billing

(asked on 3rd July 2018) - View Source

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 5 February to Question 125571 on Contracts: Billing, if he will publish the payment performance data for each prime contractor for the periods between (a) April to September 2017 and (b) October 2017 to April 2018 inclusive; if he will publish the data and graphs showing how central Government Departments performed against payment policy targets for 2017-2018; and what steps the Government has taken to improve payment practices in government supply chains since 5 February 2018.


Answered by
Oliver Dowden Portrait
Oliver Dowden
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
This question was answered on 6th July 2018

This information is not currently held centrally.

Last year, the government introduced a payment reporting system, which requires the UK’s largest businesses to report on their payment practices, policies and performance. Large businesses must report every 6 months on their payment behaviour starting with their first full financial year that starts on or after 6 April 2017. All reports are publicly accessible at:

https://check-payment-practices.service.gov.uk/search

As of 1 April 2015 all central government departments, including their Executive Agencies and Non Departmental Public Bodies, have been required to report on their prompt payment performance. They must publish the percentage of their invoices paid within 5 days and within 30 days on a quarterly basis on their GOV.UK pages.

On 10 April, we opened a consultation on whether it would be appropriate to exclude suppliers from major government procurements if they cannot demonstrate a fair, effective and responsible approach to payment in their supply chain management. The consultation closed on 5 June and we are currently analysing the feedback.

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