An extra £1bn per year could be pumped into the Welsh economy with more innovative and creative targeting of public sector procurement. That was the message from Plaid Cymru who will this week use a debate in the Senedd to call on the new Labour Welsh government to wake up to the economic opportunities that public sector procurement has to offer.
Plaid Cymru has said that innovative handling of public sector procurement could have enormous benefits for the Welsh economy. But the party criticised Labour of failing to act on the issue so far, accusing them of sleeping on the job. Plaid Cymru Economy spokesperson, Alun Ffred Jones AM, said that Labour has failed to bring forward any plans to stimulate the Welsh economy since the election in May – and that communities across the nation are paying the price has demonstrated by a recent rise in unemployment figures.
Plaid Cymru’s Alun Ffred Jones called on the Labour government to take a leading role in harnessing the economic potential of public sector procurement for the benefit of Welsh SMEs and the wider economy of Wales. Public service bodies in Wales including the government, hospitals, schools and local government are estimated to spend over £4bn each year on buying goods and services from suppliers. Currently around half of this is spent in Wales. Plaid Cymru are calling for this to be increased to 75% which would equate to an additional £1bn per year into the Welsh economy.
Plaid Economy Spokesperson Alun Ffred Jones AM said:
“Plaid Cymru is very clear that now is the time for positive action to renew and rebuild the Welsh economy. The Welsh government needs to wake up to the economic opportunities of public sector procurement which could potentially boost the Welsh economy by an additional £1bn each year.
“It is imperative that the Welsh government uses the tools that it has at its disposal to stimulate the Welsh economy so that our communities can rebuild and move forwards. Labour cannot be allowed to carry on sitting on their hands doing nothing. The public sector in Wales spends a huge amount each year on procurement, yet all too often Welsh companies lose out.
“Plaid Cymru wants to see action from this government to enable Welsh companies, small and medium sized businesses in particular, to access public sector contracts. This could bring an additional £1bn per year into the economy and of course money earned in Wales by Welsh companies is more likely to be spent in Wales – again and again.
We know that local, Welsh SMEs often struggle to compete for public sector contracts. We also know that there is expertise and best practice out there that make public sector tendering processes accessible for smaller companies. We want the Welsh government to take a lead on this issue and take positive action to ensure that expertise and best practice are rolled out across the public sector. We want them to take the lead to ensure that Welsh SMEs are in a position to tender for at least 75% of public sector procurement contracts in Wales.”
