About Buy Queensland

Queensland Government purchasing will drive genuine local employment for Queenslanders and help build capacity and prosperity in regions. By prioritising local businesses and improving the way we work with small and medium business, we will deliver greater results for the investment we make on your behalf.

Improving local outcomes

The Buy Queensland approach to procurement will give local suppliers greater access to opportunities created through government investment in their region.

This includes acknowledging that value for money goes beyond choosing the cheapest price and instead considers the potential investment in local business and genuine employment opportunities for Queenslanders.

Government agencies will also be allowed to purchase outside of whole-of-government supply arrangements in regional and remote locations to deliver improved local investment and better social outcomes.

Action items

• Apply a local benefits test for all significant procurement where a weighting of up to 30% may be applied.
• Invite one regional and one Queensland supplier to quote or tender for every opportunity, where possible.
• Deliver a more visible pipeline of opportunities for small and regional business and social enterprises.
• Encourage innovation in procurement for small to medium businesses.
• Use local contractors and manufacturers, where possible, in significant projects valued at $100 million and above.

Putting locals first

We will apply a local benefits test for all significant procurement where a weighting of up to 30% may be applied.

Better collaboration with local industry, greater visibility of procurement planning and simplifying and streamlining purchasing processes will make it easier for businesses across the state to work with government.

Delivering local jobs

Supporting local workforces is the primary focus of our new approach to Queensland Government procurement. Reducing the barriers businesses face when seeking government work will provide greater opportunities for local industry and workforces to win work. This includes supporting the capacity and capability of businesses in regional centres to work with government through low-cost training and working with industry to increase innovative procurement solutions.

We will streamline the application process for consultants and contractors seeking pre-qualification for building contracts by providing for online applications. We will work to match capability and expertise with project requirements at a local level.

Action items

• Improve our forward planning and provide advance notice of procurement activities.
• Improve accessibility for smaller suppliers by breaking down larger packages of work or combining opportunities.
• Provide greater access to procurement opportunities by exempting contractors from the pre-qualification system for building contracts under $1 million.
• Advocate for small businesses through a small business champion.
• Allow procurement to occur outside trade agreement confines.
• Reduce complexity and provide resources to help industry prepare for government tenders.
• Be more accessible and actively engage with peak industry and trade union associations.
• Allow agencies to procure outside of whole-of-government supply arrangements for regional and remote locations.
• Simplifying and streamlining purchasing processes will make it easier for business.

Making tendering easier

We will make it easier and cheaper to bid for building contracts under $1 million.

We are implementing a more sophisticated approach to the way we do business. By improving our planning, being better skilled and more transparent, we will become a better customer.

A better approach to planning

Small and medium businesses need confidence that opportunities to tender or quote will be available over the long term. Our strategy will give people confidence to invest in new equipment and hire more staff and apprentices.

By taking a consistent approach across government and providing greater transparency and certainty in our procurement processes, we can help business be better informed of opportunities to help smooth peaks and troughs of demand over time.

Action items

• Apply a local benefits test for all significant procurement where a weighting of up to 30% may be applied.
• Include government-owned corporations’ procurement spend under the Queensland Procurement Policy, while ensuring no increase in household costs.
• Assess value for money holistically using strengthened data and analytics.
• Improve our forward planning to better coordinate procurement.
• Group our procurement activities through categories of spend so we can drive our dollar further.
• Deliver value through improved research, industry engagement and planning before going to market.
• Operate a compliance coordination and referral framework.
• Build procurement capability and expertise across government.

Driving value

Improved value can be created and sustained by investing greater effort in up-front planning and engagement with industry and less time in the formal tender process.

It doesn’t matter where you live in Queensland, you deserve the very best of frontline services. We will back Queensland jobs first by ensuring businesses in regional Queensland have genuine opportunity to contract with the government.

Streamlining our processes

The strong focus on regional opportunity means that money spent to deliver a service or supplies to a region has a greater economic impact on that region.

The Procurement Strategy and Queensland Procurement Policy are supported by guides on the use of local suppliers, value for money and probity to assist agencies in their procurement decision-making and to outline opportunities for engaging local suppliers and providers.

By applying the Queensland Procurement Policy across government, including statutory bodies and government-owned corporations while ensuring no increase in household costs, there is opportunity to streamline and simplify our approach and support businesses working with multiple agencies.

Action items

• Ensure that for each procurement opportunity, at least one regional and one Queensland supplier, where possible, is invited to submit a quote or tender.
• Allow agencies to procure outside of whole-of-government supply arrangements for regional and remote locations.
• Allow procurement to occur outside of trade agreement confines.
• Support the Jobs Regional Growth Package by tailoring non-price criteria tenders to help grow new jobs.
• Improve regional procurement coordination to make opportunities more accessible.
• Build procurement capability and expertise across government.
• Advocate for regional Queenslanders through a regional procurement champion.
• Investment in regional projects such as the Cairns Convention Centre expansion benefits local communities.

Government spending must make a difference

Local procurement supports regional communities and helps to achieve government’s economic, social and environmental objectives.

Queenslanders expect the government to spend every cent with great care. That’s why we will ensure all purchases we make are with ethically, environmentally and socially responsible suppliers.

Meeting government targets

The Queensland Government has committed to achieve zero net emissions by 2050 and to install one million rooftops or 3000 megawatts of solar photovoltaics (PV) by 2020. These important initiatives are backed by our commitment to do business with environmentally responsible suppliers.

Action items

• Reduce long-term and youth unemployment by delivering jobs and increasing apprenticeships.
• Consider workplace policies and practices aimed at addressing domestic and family violence as part of supplier evaluation and selection.
• Support purchase of textile, clothing or footwear products from ethical manufacturers and suppliers where possible.
• Avoid purchasing ‘dumped goods’ which can impact local industry and manufacturers who struggle to compete against goods imported cheaply from overseas.
• Increase opportunities for apprentices by ensuring adherence to the Queensland Government Building and Construction Training Policy.
• Procure paper products that comply with the relevant standard under the Australian Forest Certification Scheme.
• Use ethical suppliers that honour commitments made in their tenders and contracts, or required by policies or laws.
• Ensure that suppliers that do not comply with the Ethical Supplier Threshold are excluded from supplying to Queensland Government.
• As part of the Ethical Supplier Mandate, monitor supplier performance to identify the small percentage of suppliers who wilfully and repeatedly fail to deliver on commitments, breach contractual or policy requirements, or break laws.
• Suspend unethical suppliers that accumulate 20 or more demerits (within 12 months) under the Ethical Supplier Mandate, so that they are unable to tender for government business for a defined period.
• Inform suppliers that they should take reasonable action to ensure compliance with the Ethical Supplier Mandate and the Ethical Supplier Threshold within their supply chains.

Spend with care

As a significant investor in our state, the Queensland Government has the ability to lead by example. Value for money is more than just price paid. Our spend can also help to deliver on important economic, social and environmental objectives and allow government to seek opportunities which:

• deliver genuine, quality, secure ongoing jobs with fair pay and safe working conditions
• ensure Queensland taxpayers’ money is used to build the local economy
• are free from specifications or requirements that could hinder or rule out local industry participation
• supports people who locally produce or deliver goods and services for Queensland.

We will back suppliers that act ethically, work to minimise carbon emissions, provide jobs to young people and help address domestic and family violence.

We will shift the focus of procurement to working with the sector to plan for the future. We will invest more in innovation and back Queensland businesses to deliver.

Advancing innovation

The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector will continue to grow. Innovative procurement processes and improved pre-qualification requirements for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) will enable government to harness the power of start-ups and small business to deliver innovative solutions.

Other innovative procurement approaches, like the Small Business Innovation Research and Testing within Government programs, will also help to deliver better solutions and provide more opportunities for small business and start-ups to work with government.

It unlocks the potential of innovative businesses and individuals to create a new era of opportunity for Queenslanders.

Action items

• Provide greater access to procurement opportunities by exempting suppliers from QAssure accreditation for contracts under $1 million.
• Improve pre-qualification requirements for SMEs.
• Draw business to Queensland through the Advance Queensland Industry Attraction Fund.
• Encourage take-up of the ICT SME participation scheme and use of innovative procurement approaches.

Solutions for the future

We will harness the power of start-ups and back Queensland businesses to deliver innovative solutions.

We take a collaborative approach to planning and managing our spend and engage with industry to deliver greater opportunity and more value for money.

The Queensland Government’s procurement governance model supports this engagement focus and provides for coordinated, strategic industry and union input to government purchasing.

Our engagement model is underpinned by the Procurement Industry Advisory Group (PIAG) as a platform for industry, unions and government to discuss issues of strategic importance. It also includes category councils which focus on industry engagement for major areas of spend.

View the procurement governance framework.

Queensland Government procurement governance structure

Manage performance

Office of the Chief Advisor—Procurement: Provides governance, policy and guidance, data and reporting, compliance coordination and referral, capability uplift and systems leadership and support.

Strategy and support

Queensland Government Procurement Committee (QGPC): Oversees, directs and sponsors key strategic whole-of-government procurement activities. Representatives of the six category councils are among the departments which make up the QGPC.

Procurement Industry Advisory Group: Formal, regular engagement with industry and trade unions, regional and small business champions to facilitate coordinated access to industry advice about how we can make government a better customer.

Category governance

Category councils

Agency led category councils oversee and direct strategic procurement activities in relation to major categories of spend across government. The category councils agree and govern the category strategy for the category spend profile and endorse related execution plans.

The six councils are:

• Information and Communication Technology Category Council
• Building Construction and Maintenance Category Council
• Social Services Category Council
• Transport Infrastructure and Services Category Council
• General Goods and Services Category Council
• Medical Category Council.

Industry engagement groups

Also known as Industry Reference Groups, these groups are made up of industry and union representatives. They provide advice to category councils on major categories of spend and enable greater awareness and collaboration to drive more cost-effective and innovative procurement outcomes.