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Tories: Give our small firms a shot at £125bn Whitehall cash
Paul Waugh, Deputy Political Editor28.10.08
MINISTERS should throw a recession lifeline to small businesses by opening up the Government's £125 billion a year procurement budget, the Tories said today.
Leader David Cameron and shadow chancellor George Osborne said that although Whitehall is the biggest buyer of goods and services in the economy, most small businesses are locked out.
Making it easier for small businesses to win government contracts would give companies a crucial source of revenue during the downturn, helping to protect jobs across the country.
The Tories said a Conservative government would scrap the rule requiring companies to provide three years of audited accounts when bidding for government contracts - a regulation ruling out new companies - and would introduce a target that 25 per cent of government contracts should be awarded to small firms. At present the figure is only 16 per cent.
