The SEC Group's campaign to abolish retentions in public sector contracts by 2007 came under attack at a recent Trade and Industry Select Committee evidence session.
Officials from the DTI and the Office of Government Commerce were questioned on their reluctance to give up retentions. Mark Gibson, director general of the business group at the DTI, explained: "Big name departments are making great strides considering Egan principles were only introduced in 1999 and smaller departments have inexperienced procurement teams that rely on retentions to give them confidence."

However, the select committee did receive a government commitment to measure the use of retentions in public sector contracts, alongside that of the industry's progress towards zero defects by 2005. In addition it will provide a list of all public sector bodies that have abandoned retentions, along with their expenditure on construction procurement.

Jerry Wallwork, SEC Group representative, said: "I was encouraged that the government seemed to accept the fact that retentions would come to an end at some point, and that the main question related to how and when we got there."

Source

Electrical and Mechanical Contractor