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Buying into our future: sustainability initiatives in local government procurement
Author(s) -
Preuss Lutz
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
business strategy and the environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.123
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1099-0836
pISSN - 0964-4733
DOI - 10.1002/bse.578
Subject(s) - sustainability , procurement , purchasing , business , local government , government (linguistics) , government procurement , private sector , sustainable development , autonomy , public sector , social sustainability , economic growth , public administration , economics , marketing , political science , economy , ecology , linguistics , philosophy , law , biology
Local government in the United Kingdom is well placed to make a contribution to sustainable development in its area. Although only enjoying partial autonomy from central government without its own constitutional basis, its aggregate purchasing expenditure dwarfs that of central government. Case study research into procurement by local authorities in England reveals a wide range of activities aimed at addressing the challenges of sustainable development, covering environmental and social as well as economic development aspects. However, these initiatives are still of a patchy nature, in terms of both differences between aspects of sustainability and variation between local authorities. Many sustainability initiatives also have cost implications for local government, which may clash with other priorities. To overcome such barriers, local authorities could cooperate with other public sector organizations in the United Kingdom and beyond, as well as with the private sector, to learn from the sustainability experience elsewhere. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.