The fourth Annual Report of the NT Buy Local Industry Advocate, Mr Denys Stedman has been published today.
Under his Terms of reference Mr Stedman is required to publish an Annual Report commenting on the effectiveness of the Buy Local Plan and the delivery of Value For Territory.
The Buy Local Industry Advocate is an independent link between local business and the Northern Territory Government and his Annual Report is an important way of reporting his observations and recommendations in respect to government procurement.
Mr Stedman's report is widely regarded as an independent assessment of the NT Government's progress in delivering on its commitments which are contained in the Buy Local Plan and also in measuring the effectiveness of the procurement framework.
Findings from Mr Stedman's report are as follows:
Mr Stedman has been unable to conclusively determine whether NT Government spending with Territory Enterprises has increased over the last 12 months, and due to ongoing data limitations he has also been unable to accurately measure the effectiveness of the Buy Local Plan. He has again called upon the government to implement a whole of government procurement management and reporting system capable of accurately capturing all government procurement transactions;Mr Stedman acknowledged the progress made by government in addressing some issues, for example, in delivering improved tender debriefs, procurement staff career development pathways and identification of government agencies to whom the Procurement Act applies;Mr Stedman has expressed his disappointment in the government's inability to deliver the promised Value For Territory Assessment Framework in the timeframe previously committed to. In addition he urged the government to ensure its delivery within the next six months or risk losing industry support for it;Mr Stedman continues to hold concerns around the ability of agencies to adequately manage contracts and monitor performance of contractors;Mr Stedman has raised concerns about the use of Agency Issued Exemption Certificates and has called for more scrutiny of them;Mr Stedman has called for a review of the current procurement Tier levels and simplification of the procurement process for lower value procurements;Mr Stedman has made a number of recommendations for improvement which he considers should be considered by the NT Government to maximise and enable the effectiveness of the Buy Local Plan to be measured, and optimal Value For Territory to be delivered into the future.
A full copy of Mr Stedman's report and can be found online here.
Mr Stedman is available to discuss his report and be contacted as follows:
