The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has said that its proposal to create a simpler pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ) to boost SME access to contracts could replace PAS 91.
The plan for a new industry standard PQQ, to be drafted with the support of the Construction Industry Council, was one of the key recommendations in RICS’ recently published Construction Policy. The document outlined measures to increase the participation of small businesses in public contracts and help the wider industry back to growth.
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The proposal to create yet another standard PQQ comes as a series of revisions to the two-year-old and much criticised PAS 91 are due to be published.
Former Rider Levett Bucknall chairman David Bucknall, who chairs the RICS’ Quantity Surveyors and Construction Professional Group, said that the proposed new form could work alongside the controversial PAS 91, which has failed to gain widespread support among public sector clients, but could also supersede it.
He said: “PAS 91 and our proposal for a simple standard PQQ are seeking the same end. There’s too much complexity in current PQQs. Most of the solutions to this problem have common parts, so what we are talking about is along the same lines as PAS 91. PAS 91 is the foundation of a simpler PQQ but it would be superseded by one that the entire industry and government can use.”
SME complaints
Bucknall reiterated long-standing SME complaints that the government’s procurement process prevents small construction companies and practices from winning public contracts due to the high level of resources required to complete current PQQs.
He said: “SMEs account for a significant proportion of the construction sector and 50% of RICS members. They are a very important part of the economic recovery.”
The RICS Construction Policy also recommended that the Government Procurement Service should create a single portal for SMEs to register their accreditation and references, and for all companies involved in the construction industry to support the Prompt Payment Code.
But many in the industry have questioned whether the RICS proposals – which have been unveiled as the financial crisis enters its fifth year and the coalition government is in the final two years of its current term of office – are “too little too late”.
But Bucknall said: “You could always say something is too late, but I firmly believe the current timing is good. This policy offers the government a serious opportunity to show it really can support enterprise.”
He added: “I’m reasonably optimistic that the government will adopt the principles of the policy, but whether they do it fast enough is another matter. The feedback we’ve received from the Cabinet Office indicates the government is enthusiastic about the Construction Policy.”
