Last week on Friday, the Government updated its policy paper “The UK Science and Technology Framework”.
You may or may not be wondering why I’m writing this week’s ‘view from the Top’ about a policy paper. But, this one caught my eye because although it feeds into the Government’s ambition announced a couple of years ago, it has been updated.
It has updated in the sections around procurement and includes more references to the supply chain, including SMEs. It is this reason I was interested in writing about this paper. When detailing procurement in the paper, a vision has been set that Government departments will create a demand for innovation that can catalyse their buying power into economic growth.
There is a point made that Government Departments should “clearly articulate their technology needs through long-term strategies to give businesses confidence to invest and shape markets, with a proportion of departmental spend dedicated to procurement supporting innovation.” And this, for me, is where the rub can sometimes be. Not that there shouldn’t be long term strategies, or that a proportion of department spend shouldn’t be supporting innovation. It is that traditionally the Government is not very good at talking to small innovators or SMEs; it’s very good at talking with big tech providers – but they plough their own furrow.
I’ve provided a screenshot of a critical part in section six under “Procurement”, because each point has such relevance for our sector. With “innovation” being in our organisational title and the immense wealth of data and experience from our own support to councils in this space, and the IPS. I can’t help but feel I am going to be pressing DfT around this area very proactively over the next few years.
We know that innovative SMEs and innovators find it very hard to get to speak to councils (or even government). It is even harder to get things bought hence establishing the LCRIG IPS. So, reading the outcomes I am pleased to see a recognition of future planning needed, but also the last bullet point could be as much written for councils as for government departments.
All in all, the paper is worth a read, but unlikely to change things in the short term for councils, innovators, SMEs and the highways supply chain. I think we have yet to see if the new Procurement Bill (soon to be Act) will do as it suggests. For example, Government hints “it will unleash opportunities for SMEs”. It also suggests the rules will be “[…] simpler, more flexible and less complicated rules will open up more government procurement for small businesses and voluntary and community groups”. If the last bullet point shown in the screenshot does not get investment (and I don’t mean money), then I fear not much will change.
Paula Claytonsmith, Chief Executive