Council tendering dispute escalates

A ROW over tenders for materials to promote Perthshire in the run up to the G8 Summit at Gleneagles this summer is intensifying. Several people got in touch to express concerns and yesterday The Courier revealed that facts obtained under the freedom of information act proved Perth and Kinross Council had not awarded a single tender to any local firm for two years.

Despite the charge of double standards - claiming to promote the area on one hand while handling out contracts to non-local firms on the other - Perth and Kinross Council last night hotly disputed any impropriety. Lewis Rose of the Perth-based Uk Built was among those to tender for the glossy G8 Perthshire Publication document. He is one of several business people insisting the deadline for interested parties was put back and believes that was done purely to accommodate companies in the Central Belt.

Mr Rose claimed the move may even be contrary to European tender law. "After reading stories in the Courier concerning the tender process for the G8 Perthshire Publication I wish to add comment," he said. "My company Uk built (Perth) submitted a tender for the project on ...time but the deadline was moved back nearly a week to allow one of the tendering companies to complete their proposal. "Under European tender law it is clear that if a company cannot make the deadline, their tender is to be ignored." Mr Rose continued. "The legislation is unclear as to whether a local authority can change a tender deadline to accommodate individual companies.

"Althought the tendering process appeared to be fair. However if the company that won the tender was the same company that orchestrated a need for the deadline to be delayed. Serious questions need to be asked." Mr Rose said it was "disappointing" that a company from outwith the local area was providing a "flagship" publication to promote Perthshire. He went back to Councillor John Llyod's suggestion for a tendering seminar to help clarify the council's position.

"Part of the Uk Built tender concept was 'Perthshire is for People' - I would expect the local council to actively promote local business," Mr Rose continued.

Meanwhile, Auchterarder - based web design professional Jayne Shenstone of Sundial Creative also has concerns over the apparent change to the deadline for tenders. "The tender process was put back by one week," she claimed. "We were told that one of the large agencies approached needed extra time to prepare their bid. "This should never have been allowed in the tender process - a deadline is a deadline. "We are trying to get an answer from the council as to whether this deadline was put back to accommodate the company that won the contract - as yet they have not come back to us with a reply," Ms Shenstone added.

When contacted by The Courier a council spokeswoman insisted the system for choosing tenders had been fair and proper. "The council vigorously denies any suggestion of impropriety, made by two of the unsuccessful companies (Sundial Creative and Uk Built) in the award of the contract for the Perthshire Publication and CD-rom," she said. "Both Sundial Creative and Uk Built have received detailed feedback form the council on the criteria used in the selection process and why they were not awarded the contract."

The spokesman went on to confirm the deadline had been changed. "The deadline for submission of proposals for the Perthshire Publication and the CD-rom was extended from Monday, December 20 until Friday, December 24," she explained. "The council contacted the companies who indicated that they intended to submit a proposal regarding the proposed extension of the deadline. "All the companies, including Sundial Creative and Uk Built, indicated that this would be acceptable and that they had no objection to the extension. "The companies concerned were then advised that the deadline had been extended.

" When specifically asked why the deadline had been changed the spokeswoman said, "One of the companies invited to submit a proposal contacted the council to express concern regarding the original deadline for submission. "After taking appropriate advice each of the companies who indicated that they intended to submit a proposal were contacted regarding the possibiltiy of extending the deadline. "All of the companies, including Sundial Creative and Uk Built indicated they were agreeable to the deadline being extended."

Original story from the Perthshire Courier 02/03/05 written by Dave Lord