All quiet on the home front?
We’ve reported on how natural disasters, the economic stability of suppliers and commodity swings are affecting purchaser’s procurement choices, but are buyers closely monitoring political policy decisions to consider their potential impact?
The EU’s fresh look at public procurement rules and amendments is, I’m sure, being closely monitored by public purchasers. Sustainability targets adopted by the UK government are already filtering down into the buying activities of the private as well as the public sector. And political unrest abroad is assessed by buyers sourcing goods from those locations.
But perhaps purchasers should keep in mind the risks posed a little closer to home.
As reported in SM, the coalition government is proposing that all lorries using UK roads pay for the privilege, but has said it will compensate UK hauliers for the extra. Some buyers have told SM that they would, in response, use UK hauliers instead of foreign companies, which may try to pass on the extra charges to customers.
This is just one example of a proposal the current government is considering; there are, of course, many more. How far do you go to assess the impact of proposed government policies on your operation?
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I don’t think EU can assess political risks on procurement at any one time. Politics is dynamic. Nations play different roles on different days. At one point, they are friends but at another, they are enemies. That’s the rule of the game.
I do not believe it is necessary for EU to be able to assess political risks on procurement. Each procuerement exercise takes into consideration many variables in the evaluation process and the best socio-economical outcome is sought. Cost of acquisition of goods and services are always high on agenda. The process should be able to verify offers and knowledge about an impact of new government policies will not make any difference to the procurement process although might explain the outcome.
I would like to hear from buyers who told SM that they would use British hauliers in response to government proposal. What if Spanish haulier will prove to be cheaper despite the fact that has to pay additional charges for privilidge of using British roads?
Felix – did you ever consider diplomacy as a career?