Procurement

The government spends around £300bn a year – a third of all public expenditure – on buying in goods and services from outside government. Our research, events and commentary analyse what the money is spent on, who wins contracts, and whether taxpayers are getting good value for money.

We assess where outsourcing works and where it doesn’t, the reasons for this and the impact of government reforms to improve procurement practice. We make recommendations on how to improve the commercial skills of civil servants, the quality of contracting data, and accountability for outsourcing decisions.