ppn minutes - Public Procurement Network

The SIGMA paper does not present the evaluation of the specific systems.
SIXTH PANEL OF THE AGENDA:
PPN – INFORMAL SYSTEM FOR SETTING CROSS BORDER DISPUTES.
Mr Jonathan Denison Cross, Office of Government Commerce (OGC), United
Kingdom
DEVELOPING AN ACCESSIBLE INFORMAL UK COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE.
OGC is an independent office of the Treasury set up seven years ago. Work with
public sector organizations to gain best possible value for money from procurement.
OGC support various initiatives. This encourages better supplier relations such as
sustainable procurement and the benefits of utilizing smaller suppliers and the
potential of e-Procurement. .
OGC represents the UK within the European Union and GPA and supports major
programme and project management, which involves complex procurement.
Mr Jonathan Denison Cross outlined the possible fears of the contracting authorities,
such as possible increase in numbers of formal complaints during the Alcatel
standstill period, leading to delays in acquiring contracts or the high cost of the
procedure for all the parties concerned. Mr Cross also stated that most of the
complaints come from SME’s.
Mr Jonathan Denison Cross presented the benefits of using the informal complaint.
The new informal complaint function has been set up primarily to handle procurement
complaints within the UK, but is in fact provided for all the European suppliers who
have grounds to raise a complaint.
In case of suppliers from outside of the UK who have a complaint about a UK
Contracting Authority, a closer cooperation with other informal complaints functions
such as SOLVIT and the PPN will be provided, in order to ensure that complainants
are directed to the most appropriate source of help. This includes the promotion of
the use of SOLVIT and PPN on its website.
OGC also refer the complaints received to the designated bodies. OGC will have an
oversight rule. The complaints office, to be set up of the 1 st May, will be placed in the
Policy Unit within the OGC.
The informal complaint function is envisaged in cases where the dispute between
supplier and contracting authority has not been a subject to formal proceedings.
Ms Magdalena Olejarz, Public Procurement Office, Poland
REPORT ON PAST YEAR’S CROSS-BORDER CASES WITHIN PPN.
QUESTIONNAIRE ON FUNCTIONING OF PPN.
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