Unsolicited proposals can provide a source of innovative ideas about how to improve the delivery of Government services.
As with all projects, unsolicited proposals must demonstrate an overall community benefit and be consistent with the Government’s plans and priorities. Commercial viability alone will not be sufficient to gain Government support.
The Director-General of the Premier’s Department is the first point of contact for unsolicited proposals.21 Centralised receipt allows opportunities to be captured as they present themselves, and timely and comprehensive feedback to be provided to the proponent.
The Director-General will refer single agency proposals to that agency. Proposals with a cross-agency element and new initiatives (i.e. those regarded as not currently part of the Government’s plans or priorities) need wider consideration.
The Premier’s Department will consult with relevant agencies to assess the merits of a proposal and determine where it fits in the relative priorities of agencies. The SIS will be used to benchmark the proposal against current priorities and gauge its impact on other projects.
The Director-General will advise proponents of:
• The applicability of these Guidelines to their proposal
• Additional information required to facilitate further consideration
• The process and timetable for a preliminary assessment
• How the Premier’s Department might assist them with these processes.
The Director-General will also inform proponents of the outcomes of the preliminary assessment.
The Government will not reimburse any costs incurred by a proponent in developing and presenting an unsolicited proposal.
Where a promising proposal has a broader focus than a single agency, the Director-General will appoint a lead agency to develop it in accordance these Guidelines.
During this process, the Government will normally test unsolicited proposals in the market place through competitive tendering. The aim is to maximise both financial efficiencies and effective service delivery.
Requests to bypass the competitive tendering process and negotiate directly with the Government must be approved by the BCC. Approval will only be granted where the proponent can show that there would be no viable competition for the delivery of the proposal’s essential outcomes. See Section 3.3 for further guidance on this issue.
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21 Proposals may be submitted direct to the relevant agency where there is an existing contractual relationship between the proponent and the agency and the only way to implement the proposal would be to vary the contract.