3. e-Procurement Objectives
:: Value > Provide Return on Investment (especially for public expenditure)
:: Economies of scale > consolidating demand and placing enterprise-wide
contracts (key: reduced administration)
:: Greater transparency > avoid supplier cartels & political buying
:: Automation > Digital/electronic transfer of requests, tenders, contracts,
invoices and information
:: Time saving > identifying, sourcing, vetting and negotiating with suppliers
:: Cost saving > market average ~17% (via improved efficiency & competition)
4. Public Procurement Failings
:: <10% of companies across Europe tender
:: Local V International suppliers
:: SME engagement (23 million SMEs in Europe)
:: Cost of tendering (Avg: €28,000: 80% Supplier-20% Buyer)
6. Social Initiative II:
Social Business Comm (EC)
Creating a favourable climate for social enterprises,
key stakeholders in the social economy and innovation
7. Social Initiative III:
Proposed proc. directive (EC)
1: Increase the efficiency of public spending to ensure the best
possible procurement outcomes in terms of value for money.
This implies in particular a simplification and flexibilisation of the
existing public procurement rules. Streamlined, more efficient
procedures will benefit all economic operators and facilitate the
participation of SMEs and cross-border bidders.
2: Allow procurers to make better use of public procurement in
support of common societal goals such as protection of the
environment, higher resource and energy efficiency, combating
climate change, promoting innovation, employment and social
inclusion and ensuring the best possible conditions for the
provision of high quality social services.
23 million SMEs in Europe representing around 99% of all undertakings, and 57% of them are sole proprietorships. They provide two thirds of total private-sector employment, represent 80% of the total job creation and produce more than half of the EU added value. - €22,500 - cost of average 5-6 bids - €5,500 - contracting authority costs
Brendan Howlin TD: Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Phil Hogan, TD Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government assist public authorities to successfully plan and implement green public procurement (GPP) by highlighting existing best-practice and outlining further actions to boost green public procurement. Government consumption accounts for a sizeable part of economic activity and demand. The annual public sector procurement budget accounts for 10% to 12% of Ireland’s GDP. In monetary terms, this equated to about €14 billion in 2011. This provides Ireland’s public sector with considerable leverage to stimulate the marketplace in favour of the provision of more resource-efficient, less polluting goods, services and works. GPP is central to the Europe 2020 Strategy4, which considers sustainable growth or “green growth” to be at the heart of a resource efficient future for Europe. Apart from averting the economic dislocation caused by unchecked climate change, investment in resource efficiency will generate gains in areas such as air quality, human health, energy security, and commercial opportunities in markets for environmental goods and services. Accordingly, the Europe 2020 Strategy calls for the promotion, at EU and national level, of policies that favour “eco-innovation and energy-efficient products and systems... including emission trading, tax reform, subsidies and loans, public investment and procurement.
More responsible businesses can foster more growth in Europe Brussels, 25 October 2011 - A responsible approach to business means more, and more sustainable, economic growth. This is why the European Commission has presented a package of measures to support entrepreneurship and responsible business. First, the Social Business Initiative will help this emerging sector to fulfil its unexploited potential. Despite the range of options provided by regulations on the matter, social enterprises often believe that they face disproportionate difficulties concerning access to public contracts. This situation arises from European rules on the matter as much as national rules, which differ greatly among the Member States where the practice of goldplating has not always made it possible to take full advantage of the Public Procurement Directives. However, certain public entities do not always make the most of the existing potential for innovation in social services. Most of the responses received by the Commission to its Green Paper on the future of public procurement consider that the potential use of social or environmental criteria in public procurement should be given greater emphasis in the Directives. regulatory environment at European and national level does not always take sufficient account of the specific characteristics of social enterprises in particular with regard to the rules on public procurement
The Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth [COM(2010) 2020] is based on three interlocking and mutually reinforcing priorities: developing an economy based on knowledge and innovation; promoting a low-carbon, resource-efficient and competitive economy; and fostering a high-employment economy delivering social and territorial cohesion. Public procurement plays a key role in the Europe 2020 strategy as one of the market-based instruments to be used to achieve these objectives by improving the business environment and conditions for business to innovate and by encouraging wider use of green procurement supporting the shift towards a resource efficient and low-carbon economy. At the same time, the Europe 2020 strategy stresses that public procurement policy must ensure the most efficient use of public funds and that procurement markets must be kept open Union-wide. In the face of these challenges, the existing public procurement legislation needs to be revised and modernised in order to make it better suited to deal with the evolving political, social and economic context.
