Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport – in the Senedd at 1:55 pm on 10 January 2018.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Russell George Russell George Conservative 1:55, 10 January 2018

Well, I appreciate your answer, but, of course, targets help us as Members in this Chamber to scrutinise the Government's plans, and, without targets, it makes our job, of course, more challenging. Now, the final part of what I want to raise is regarding procurement. Procurement is, of course, a key part, a key tool that can be used by the Government to support growth across the Welsh economy in the long term. The Welsh Government's track record, I would say, on public procurement to support Welsh businesses, I think, is extremely poor. Now, from the end of last year, I've got here the Wales Audit Office report 'Public Procurement in Wales'. What this report clearly states is that, in Wales, they found that there is clear scope for improvement in how authorities procure services at a national level. So, can I ask why does the economic plan contain so little effective detail on reforming public procurement practices across Wales at Government level? It does seem that the new economic action plan represents a big missed opportunity, I think, to reform procurement across Wales in order that we can support businesses and better support public procurement.