Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Government Procurement Service was consulted on the decision by the Department for International Trade to let a contract with Quintessentially.

Quintessentially won a competitive tender in May 2016 which was carried out by UK Shared Business Services who at the time managed UK Trade and Investment’s (UKTI) procurement activity. UKTI was a joint, non-ministerial Government Department reporting to the Secretaries of State for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The contract was awarded by UK Shared Business Services prior to the formation of the Department for International Trade (DIT). DIT took ownership of the former UKTI’s contracts and does not hold a record of whether the Government Procurement Service were consulted (now referred to as the Crown Commercial Service).