National Outsourcing Association comments on what a Conservative majority government means for outsourcing in the UK.

Kerry Hallard, CEO of the National Outsourcing Association, has shared her views on what a Conservative majority government will mean for UK outsourcing: “The NOA believes that this Conservative government will bring some welcome stability to the UK’s outsourcing industry. ISG’s first Outsourcing Index of this year saw sourcing in the UK slow, most likely due to uncertainty surrounding the election and lack of faith in a potential Labour government.

“Service providers will now feel more secure – spending on public sector outsourcing almost doubled to £120bn under the coalition, and that’s a trend we expect to continue over the next five years. We expect to see a plethora of new outsourcing deals, both public and private, over the coming months now that the election is over and a secure government has been appointed. In their election manifesto, we were pleased to see the Conservatives pledge their aim to allocate one-third of central Government procurement to SMEs. David Cameron must keep that promise – the coalition ‘supposedly’ met its 25 percent target last term, and raising it to 33 percent would provide a great and much-needed boost for the UK’s smaller service providers.

“Transparency is an important part of outsourcing – it is vital if the public is ever going to trust the industry. The coalition had a poor track record with transparency when it came to public-private contracts, falling short of pledges made by Cameron in 2010; that’s something which the Conservatives need to improve upon this time around. Implementing new policies, such as encouraging corporate accreditation for organisations involved in outsourcing, would be a great place to start. The NOA already offers a Corporate Accreditation Programme, which serves as a cost-effective way for proficient buyers of outsourcing to demonstrate their professional expertise.”