Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proportion of contracts issued by his Department and contractors include provisions to impose, as between parties to the subcontract, that any payment due from the contractor to a subcontractor under the contract is to be made no later than the end of a period of 30 days from the date on which the relevant invoice is regarded as valid and undisputed, as required by the Public Contract Regulations 2015.

Through the Public Contract Regulations 2015, all public sector buyers must include 30-day payment terms in new public sector contracts; and require that this payment term be passed down the supply chain. Public sector buyers must also publish annually details of their payment performance.

The Government strongly encourages businesses to report poor payment practice and instances of late payment, including late payment through the supply chain, in public sector contracts to its Mystery Shopper service. Mystery Shopper will then investigate.