Skip to main content

Welsh Firms Missing Out on 2012 Olympics



A question by Cheryl Gillan MP to Tessa Jowell has revealed that firms in England have secured 97 per cent of the 600 contracts so far signed for the games. In contrast, only 1 per cent has gone to Welsh firms.

According to Ms Jowell:

"To date three businesses or organisations registered in Wales have supplied goods and services to the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), these are John Evans Photography; Strategy and Solution Limited; and the Office for National Statistics. These contracts were awarded for photography, management consulting services and data processing and preparation. Due to commercial sensitivities I cannot make public the value of each of these contracts, but I can tell you that spend to date with them is £5,053. The Olympic Delivery Authority will directly procure over 2,000 contracts; these are expected to generate 50,000 supply chain opportunities. At this early stage, 600 contracts have been awarded. The percentage shares are as follows: England (97%); Wales (1%); Northern Ireland (1%) and Scotland (1%)".


As Cheryl rightly says, the Government promised that the 2012 London Olympics will benefit every part of Britain. These figures suggest otherwise and could lead some to think that firms bidding for these contracts are not competing on a level playing field.

More importantly, what is the Welsh Assembly Government doing to ensure that Welsh firms are being fully supported in any process to gain access to the hundreds of millions of pounds of contracts that are, at the moment, going to firms in England? Surely, it cannot be a question of quality, so it must be one of access to the procurement process.

Comments

Anonymous said…
also has there been any information from WAG or Westminister for small business on how to apply to tender for Olympic contracts.
April 28, 2008 4:48 pm
Anonymous said…
And sod all has been done about helping small firms access the £5 billion of public sector spend in Wales so why should we worry about the Olympics
April 28, 2008 11:35 pm
Anonymous said…
WAG sleeping on the job again ...
April 29, 2008 8:01 am
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THE IMPORTANCE OF FRANCHISING

When we talk about start-ups and entrepreneurship, rarely do we discuss the potential of franchising not only as a way of establishing new ventures in the economy but also as a method of growing existing businesses. According to the British Franchising Association, franchising is the granting of a licence by one person (the franchisor) to another (the franchisee), which entitles the franchisee to own and operate their own business under the brand, systems and proven business model of the franchisor. The franchisee also receives initial training and ongoing support, comprising all the elements necessary to establish a previously untrained person in the business. This enables individuals to start their own businesses without having to develop their own ideas and utilising an existing brand and established market. Of course, whilst each franchise business is owned and operated by the franchisee, the franchisor controls the quality and standards of the way in which the business is
Read more

Change your business through change

All business organisations, especially entrepreneurial small firms, must cope with an ever changing business environment. However, small firms have a very limited ability in being able to control and relate to changes in the environment, although this can depend on the context of change. For example, if a major customer changes increases its order, the entrepreneur should be able to predict events and actions with regard to the timing and consequences of such a change and forecast any changes in the required resources and cashflow. Given this, the entrepreneur can undertake rational short-interval planning activity in order to underpin organisational control. However, much of the change facing business today is largely unpredictable in terms of its timing and its consequences. In other words, such change is open-ended, with it often being unclear what is changing or why it is changing. For example, the effect of the 9/11 bombing of the World Trade Centre was largely unexpected and its
Post a Comment
Read more

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE CREATIVE CLASSES

One of my favourite academic books of the last two decades must be the “Rise of the Creative Classes” by Professor Richard Florida.  This was one of the first detailed studies of the growing group of individuals who use their creativity and mental labour to earn a living and not only included those in arts and entertainment, but also people working in science and technology as well as knowledge-based professions such as healthcare, law, business, and finance.  Fast forward to 2022 and Professor Florida has written an updated report on the creative classes although he and his team now identify a different type of individual who is taking full advantage of the growth in digital platforms, social media, and online marketplaces.  Such ‘creators’ are defined as those who use digital technology to make and publish unique creative content, whether in the form of video, film, art, music, design, text, games, or any other media that audiences can access and respond to.  They also make their mon
Read more