TrustMark chairman Ian Livsey’s comments cheered me up, particularly his belief that householders do not always go for the cheapest quote.

Considering that the NHS, Ministry of Defence and local government have been practising procurement for many years and still cannot understand the principle of value for money, does Mr Livsey truly believe that a householder requiring a one-off extension is going to carry out a full-blown tender evaluation based on financial and soft issues? Of course not. They will pick the cheapest quote on the misguided understanding they are getting value for money.

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