Procurement push will target taxi firms for school contracts

Taxi firms will be one of the targets in an Angus bid to reach a procurement target which it is hoped will eventually see £50 million or more pumped into the area’s economy through local businesses.

Angus Council currently sits sixth in the league table of Scotland’s 32 local authorities on the back of 2018-19 procurement figures, which saw 37% of a £106.7m outlay go to Angus-based suppliers, compared to a Scottish average of 26%.

The council’s economic development spokesman, Forfar Conservative councillor Braden Davy, said he would like to see the figure go higher.

“We should be making it as easy as possible for people to do business with us,” he said.

“Sixth in Scotland is a great achievement, but I would like to see us with at least half of our spend going to local suppliers.

That would help us climb the league table and put £50m into the local economy.”

The council hopes to increase its school transport procurement pool, with a contract for the Brechin and Montrose areas soon to come up for grabs.

Taxi operators who may be interested in the contract but do not normally bid for tenders have the chance to join a series of workshops from early March aimed at engaging smaller businesses.

Mr Davy also welcomed statistics showing a 91% occupancy rate for the council’s commercial property portfolio in November and a high level of inquiries, with Forfar, Montrose and Brechin the in-demand burghs.

“Last year was a bumper year for new businesses – every job is important in Angus,” said Mr Davy.