Written question asked by Lord Bellingham (Conservative) on Tuesday, 8 July 2003, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 11 July 2003. It was answered by Nigel Griffiths (Labour) on Friday, 11 July 2003 on behalf of the Department of Trade and Industry.

Dept of Trade and Industry

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what recent representations she has had from small businesses regarding reform of the system for awarding EU public sector contracts.

Answer: Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent representations she has had from small businesses regarding reform of the system for awarding EU public sector contracts. [125169] Nigel Griffiths: I meet regularly with organisations representing the interest of small businesses, and am aware of the difficulties small firms face when tendering for public sector contracts across the EU. We have highlighted these concerns in the UK's response to the Commission's Entrepreneurship Green Paper, written after a public consultation. Our response calls for the Commission to ensure that small firms do not face discrimination in relation to public sector procurement and that access to the EU public sector marketplace is encouraged for all firms, regardless of size. This view is, I believe, also taken up by many small firm representative organisations' responses to the Commission, and I look forward to drawing further on their views as the drafting of the Entrepreneurship Action Plan progresses.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 125169; 408 c1028W;408 c1026W
Session: 2002-03
Subjects: Contracts European Union Public sector Procurement Small businesses
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk