Andrew Smith announces plans for major roll out of Government Procurement Card

More than £45million worth of value for money improvements is expected to be achieved in the next 18 months as take up of the Government Procurement Card (GPC) increases across central Government, Andrew Smith, Chief Secretary to the Treasury announced today.

This is in addition to the £25m saved in its first three years of operation, using the GPC for processing low-value transactions and putting in place a new impetus to encourage a switch from paper-based systems to electronic processing.

The Government also announced plans today to widen the scope of the GPC as part of its commitment to ecommerce, by allowing higher value capital items and service transactions to be paid for by GPC.

Andrew Smith, Chief Secretary to the Treasury said:

?The Government Procurement Card is thriving and making a real difference to the way Government is doing business. The increased take-up in the use of the Card makes good business and environmental sense.

Peter Gershon, Chief Executive of the OGC, tasked with driving forward the use of the GPC within civil central Government, said:

?Huge strides have already been made by government in adapting to new electronic techniques. Use of the GPC is entirely consistent with this vision. and increases efficiency both for Government and for its suppliers.?

The GPC, managed by the OGC in conjunction with VISA and its member banks, is seen as a catalyst for change among Government buying professionals as it challenges the status quo and encourages suppliers to operate in a more efficient and cost effective way.

The Government is keen to meet its environmental objectives. Environmental benefits have also continued to grow as the GPC has eliminated the use of paper requisition forms. This has saved 13 tonnes of paper in the first three years of the programme, increasing to 50 tonnes during the next 18 months.

The drive towards greater efficiency eliminates the costs incurred in traditional paper transactions and moves forward the Government's electronic agenda.

Most suppliers of low value goods and services to Government now accept payment via GPC. This is good news for Departments who are looking to ramp up their GPC programmes. Since its launch in 1997, civil servants using the GPC have conducted more than 923,000 low-value transactions

The GPC Card is used by Government Departments to purchase a wide range of goods and services including lower value goods and services including office stationery, building maintenance and repairs, IT consumables and temporary staffing requirements.

The GPC is a Government-branded VISA card. It is similar in its use and features as the card in most people's wallet or purse and is designed for ease of use by the cardholder.

Current spend on the GPC is over £100m and is expected to reach a cumulative figure of £300m by the end of 2002. This represents over 2.4m transactions per year.

Notes to editors

Following an Alignment Review, the OGC now has a new integrated structure which incorporates the activities of PACE (Property Advisers to the Civil Estate), CCTA (Central Computer Telecommunications Agency) excluding its Managed Services Division which has now merged with the former TBA (The Buying Agency) to become the OGC Trading fund OGC buying solutions.

VISA operates the Government Procurement Card in conjunction with Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, Ulster Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland Group.

Press enquiries to Malcolm Graves at HM Treasury on 020 7211 1366 or Martin Day at OGC on 020 7211 1318, or via email.