Our Ref: FOI 13322
5 October 2015
Jamie Griffiths
Via email
Dear Mr Griffiths
Your request under the Freedom of Information Act
Further to your request for information dated 12th August 2015:
“….copies of the tender specifications, assessment notes and awarded contracts for 'Treasury Management Advice' (TMA) services, tendered by Birmingham City Council between 2002-2012.”
Birmingham City Council (the ‘Council’) does not hold the information you have requested prior to 2012 but is disclosing the following that is listed below as it falls within the scope of your request:
- The Council’s tender invitation letter
- Treasury Management Adviser Service Specification 2012
- The Council’s tender assessment score matrix
The Council is disclosing the above mentioned information which forms part of the awarded contract that is for an initial term of three years starting on 1 December 2012 with an option to the Council to extend for a fourth year and a further option to extend for a fifth year without prejudice to the Council’s right to terminate at any time,.
The names of unsuccessful tenderers in (3) above and the fee tendered for the services in the Specification have been redacted on the basis of section 43(2) exemption that disclosure of the requested information would prejudice the bidders’ commercial interests. The Council considers that the public interest in withholding the information outweighs the public interest in disclosing it and that therefore the information is exempt from release.
This exemption applies because the proposed fee tendered reflects the level of resources the contractor will commit to the Council to provide a high quality, comprehensive and effective Treasury Management Consultancy Service. The proposed fees relate to the investments in designing a solution for the initial duration of the contract and for a fourth and fifth year in the event the contract is extended.
If the Council were to disclose the precise details of the service/product information in a winning tender to the world at large (including the losing bidders) this may have an adverse impact on the successful company awarded the contract and also effect the authority’s future negotiating position in terms of managing the contract with a view to extending it. In the Council’s view disclosure of this information would reveal the basis for contractor’s service fee tendered and enable competitors to undercut it when bidding for contracts of a similar nature elsewhere.
As s43(2) is a qualified exemption the Council has considered the public interest test as to whether the contractor’s service/product information should be disclosed.
Disclosure would assist the promotion of openness and transparency in the public procurement process. However, the Council does not consider it to be in the public interest that companies entering into contracts with public authorities should be commercially prejudiced as a result. The Council having taken into account the views of the contractor, concludes that the public interest in maintaining the exemption in relation to the company’s pricing information outweighs the public interest in disclosure.
If you wish to discuss any of the above please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.
Right of Appeal
If you are unhappy with the handling or the outcome of this request, you are entitled to make a request for an internal review / appeal, such view to be undertaken by Council officers not involved in the handling of your request.
If you wish to take advantage of the internal appeal / review process, this can be done by contacting:
Birmingham City Council
Corporate Information Governance Team
Performance and Information Division
PO Box 16366
Birmingham
B2 2YY
Telephone: 0121 303 4876
Fax: 0121 675 1427
Email:
If subsequently you are not satisfied with the Council’s decision following the review you may apply to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the Council. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at the following address:
The Information Commissioner
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Telephone: 01625 545745
Web Address:
Yours sincerely
Corporate Information Governance Team Telephone: 0121-303 4876
Economy Directorate Facsimile: 0121-303 4117
PO Box 16366
Birmingham
B2 2YY