THE number of Scots businesses winning work from their local authority has almost halved over the last decade, according to a new report.
Official figures show councils used just 29,910 local suppliers last year, compared with 51,312 in 2008.
Meanwhile, authorities are also spending less money on securing the services of firms from within their geographic boundaries.
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said the statistics – published by the Improvement Service – underlined the need for fresh action to be taken.
It called on First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to set out robust new procurement measures when she unveils her Programme for Government in Holyrood today.
Scottish policy chair Andrew McRae said: “The Scottish public sector is a serious economic player.
“It spends around £11 billion buying goods and services every year – money that, if spent smartly, can generate added benefits for the local community.
“We know that money which is spent local stays local – and that buying from local small businesses has economic and social benefits way beyond the bottom line.
“But despite political intention to get more cash spent locally, today we see that far fewer local businesses are getting a fair share of our public sector’s spending power.”
He added: “When the First Minister stands up in Holyrood tomorrow to unveil her Programme for Government, tough action on procurement needs to be in there.
“That means requirements for all of the public sector – from hospitals to schools – working together at a local level, to co-ordinate buying strategies and open up opportunities for firms in the area. It means ensuring that new procurement rules requiring contracts to be broken down into the smallest possible lots are actually enforced.
“We need to mandate annual public sector reports on procurement to detail spending with micro and small businesses, setting targets and an action plan for improvement each year.”
The Improvement Service report – published last week – reviewed councils’ spending figures over the last 10 years.
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