On 11 February the Prime Minister, Francis Maude, the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Baroness Eaton of the Local Government Group launched a number of initiatives to open up Government Procurement to more competition and participation by small and medium sized enterprises.

One of the measures announced was an extension of the Cabinet Office’s Government Procurement supplier Feedback Service and an invitation to small businesses to become a ‘mystery shopper’. Suppliers were asked to tell the Supplier Feedback Service about tenders they did not understand or instances of what they believed to be poor procurement practice, with a commitment that procurers would be challenged to be more transparent and open. The Supplier Feedback Service committed to publish the results of the investigations into the cases received.

The document which sets out the issue and the resolution of the cases investigated in the first 3 months of the scheme between February and May can be found here