4
June 2008 –
Hilton
Caledonian, Edinburgh
Setting
the challenge
The Scottish Sustainable Procurement Conference
and Exhibition was the first event of its kind
to fully embrace the Scottish public sector’s
drive towards more sustainable procurement, explains
Government Opportunities (GO) Features
Editor Morven MacNeil.
Sustainable
procurement can take on a variety of titles, including
sustainable development in procurement, green
procurement, corporate social responsibility in
procurement, and responsible purchasing. In broad
terms it means taking full account of environmental,
social and economic factors in public procurement.
The Scottish Government, responsible for an annual
spend of £8 billion, has been proactive
in creating a responsible procurement agenda and
the Scottish public sector continues to engage
directly with suppliers to secure a greener future
for Scotland.
‘Maintaining the Future’ – the
Government Opportunities (GO) Scottish Sustainable
Procurement Conference and Exhibition 2008, held
recently at the Carlton Hilton Hotel, Edinburgh
– was the ideal platform for speakers to
update delegates on the progress of the sustainable
procurement agenda and impart advice on how delegates
could best implement sustainability practices
within their procurement remit.
Speakers
included John Swinney MSP, Cabinet
Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth,
Scottish Government; Shaun McCarthy,
Director, Action Sustainability; and Dave
Cook, Policy Manager, Scottish Procurement
Directorate
Chairing
the conference was Grahame Steed,
Managing Editor of GO magazine. He stressed
the importance of both the public and the private
sector supporting the sustainability agenda, saying:
“If the public sector has sustainability
as a concern, then so too must the supplier community
and even end users of the public services. This
is an issue that affects us all.
“I think the importance of sustainability
is really now being driven home as we feel the
impact (for example rising oil prices) in our
pocket. And while nobody welcomes the increasing
cost of running our homes, businesses and the
public sector estate, nor the cost of fuelling
our public or private transport, perhaps the price
increases in fuel have been the wake-up call that
we’ve been waiting for in order to help
push sustainability issues from the background
further into the foreground.
“Sustainability
has to be considered as a core part of procurement
exercises, and not as an afterthought. There is
also a great deal of optimism that both the public
and private sectors are now actively engaging
in addressing sustainability issues.”
John
Swinney explained how the Government is trying
to approach the various issues around procurement
and sustainability. Mr Swinney highlighted the
basic elements underpinning the Government’s
approach to procurement and sustainability –
including the challenge of climate change.
On
the issue of climate change, he added: “We’ve
said that by 2050 we want to reduce emissions
in Scotland by 80 per cent. It’s a very
ambitious target, and will be enshrined in legislation
during 2009-10 by the Scottish Parliament. Tackling
climate change cannot be taken forward just by
one portfolio of government. My cabinet colleagues
are equally responsible for tackling climate change.
That sense of common ownership around the cabinet
table also needs to be replicated across the public
sector so that all of us have the obligation to
play our part in taking forward the agenda that
supports climate change.
“None
of these three major pillars of our thinking that
go into tackling the issue of Scottish sustainable
procurement will be able to be taken forward if
the whole issue of procurement is compartmentalised
and parcelled away into the periphery of public
sector organisations.”
Later
in the year the Government will be issuing the
Scottish Sustainable Procurement Action Plan,
which will underline the Government’s commitment
to a sustainable Scotland. It will explain how
each organisation can improve its performance
on sustainable procurement and show just how its
performance compares to best practice.
Shaun
McCarthy stressed that government policy reflects
scientific evidence on the need to reduce carbon
emissions and maintain the consumption of resources
at a sustainable rate. He explained that the Sustainable
Procurement Task Force defines sustainable procurement
as ‘using procurement to support wider social,
economic and environmental objectives in ways
providing real long-term benefit’. The task
force was established in May 2005, charged with
drawing up an action plan to bring about a step-change
in sustainable public procurement so that the
UK is among the leaders in the EU by 2009.
He also informed delegates that the UK is responsible
for two per cent of the world’s carbon footprint,
adding: “We need to think very hard about
sustainable consumption and production as well
as energy use.”
He concluded: “Procurement professionals
still have a long way to go. There
is an urgency to grasp this agenda; we’ve
known about this since 2005, and need to move
very quickly from inspiration to perspiration.”
Each
speaker at the conference made it clear that there
is much work to be done with regards to sustainability.
The public sector, working with its private sector
partners, has a fundamental role to play in turning
things around.
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