WIREDGOV

Last week the Government announced that the Mystery Shopper Service has been rebranded as the Public Procurement Review Service. The scope and remit of the service has been updated to reflect the rebranding.

The Public Procurement Review Service is a tool for suppliers to raise concerns about the conduct of a procurement process which they have been part of directly with the Crown Commercial Service. It provides a structured and direct route for suppliers to raise concerns about public procurement practice and provides feedback to enquirers on their concerns.

You can use the service by sending an email to publicprocurementreview@cabinetoffice.gov.uk or by telephoning their helpdesk on 0345 010 3503. The service covers all central government departments; the wider public sector (eg local authorities, NHS trusts or education establishments) in England; and prime contractors working on government contracts – we will work with contract managers to address feedback about unfair practices and other issues in the supply chain of government contracts.

The service also carries out spot checks on procurement processes as well as continuing to deal with referrals raised by SMEs and other concerned suppliers.

techUK’s Procuring the Smarter State report highlighted the importance of the Mystery Shopper service, but our 2017 GovTech SME survey found that 86% of respondents had never used it. techUK encourages members to use the Public Procurement Review Service to flag bad practice, and share good practice, to help drive improvements in procurement across the public sector.