21 February 2012

Here Today Gone Tomorrow - AD of Commercial Assurance

Nothing but trouble ( in procurement? )

Now if we go back to Walkley's warblings of August 2011 Mr Mustard blogged the following:

Welcome this week to Mick Stokes who joins us as the Assistant Director of Commercial Assurance.  Mick has specific responsibility for corporate procurement and I’m sure you all know how critical this role is at this time. Welcome Mr Stokes the fastest joiner into the blog ever. You are either very good & very brave or you are mad to try and sort out procurement in Barnet Council - it is a disaster, the biggest poisoned chalice imaginable and you need to watch out for the ceremonial sword if things don't go well. Hopefully that also means we have one less consultant ( Chris Malyon - CCMPS Ltd ) but he probably got a sideways transfer onto a One Barnet project - lots of jobs for One Barnet old boys.
OK Mr Mustard was wrong. Mr Malyon has gone back to Eastleigh (why does Barnet Council insist on using people from so far out of town. Mr Malyon wasn't paying PAYE so could, when he was here, claim his travel and/or accommodation costs against his tax bill but that little ruse is fast becoming unpopular with government and the people - it always was with the bloggers.) having used Barnet as the filling in a Capita / Serco sandwich.
It looks to Mr Mustard like things didn't go well in procurement for Mick.
The rumours are Mick that you were brought in as you worked with Andrew Travers at the LDA. Now that might just be co-incidence but as there are now a number of other ex LDA staff in procurement at Barnet the coincidence might soon stretch a bit thin. Mr Mustard knows of three but if you, dear reader, know of any, do please send an email in confidence from a private email address to mrmustard@zoho.com

The LDA is being closed so their staff have to go somewhere. No need for you all to head to Barnet now is there?


It looks like Mick caught that nasty allergy to PAYE that has been going around. Mr Stokes is a Director of JDA Procurement Consultancy Ltd which was only incorporated on 7 June 2011 ( company number 07660750 ) and is registered in Loughton which, for once, isn't a million miles from Barnet. The word is that £600 a day was paid to Hays HR. Mr Mustard also hears that you have gone off to help with the Olympics; you should enter for the sprint, the speed you high-tailed it out of Barnet you are bound to get gold.

How is the contract situation now in Barnet Mick? Did you get everything under contract before you left? No, Mr Mustard thought not. Will it get better now? Absolutely not. Here is a Q&A from the last full meeting of Council on 24 January 2012


Question 15 Councillor Alan Schneiderman
What is the latest update on the percentage of contracts that are / are not in place for all Council suppliers
 
Answer by Councillor Daniel Thomas
Of the suppliers on the Corporate Register, 89% have a contract.
 
Only contracts above £25,000 have to go on the register. Sadly the question as to what percentage of eligible suppliers were on the contract register was not asked but we still have 11% non compliance some 9 months after the problem came to light. A glacial rate of progress.

We will have to wait and see what happens next.


Yours frugally

Mr Mustard

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