11 July 2016

Lester to back local companies for council IT procurement

Wellington mayoral candidate Justin Lester has announced his intention to make Wellington the “Digital Capital” by introducing a buy local criteria for city council digital and technology procurement and appointing a Chief Innovation Officer on the council’s senior management team.

The announcements were made today at a Wellington mayoral forum hosted by the regions ICT sector.

“Of all regions, Wellington is New Zealand’s technology hub. ICT accounts for 7.3% of regional GDP, the highest of any region. As Mayor I want to accelerate this sector and its growth,” said Justin Lester.

“Despite the recent success of the digital sector, New Zealand ranks only 26th in the world on the international rankings of economic contribution from the digital sector.

“The council can assist the sector by giving local businesses a foot up when we are procuring digital and IT services. As Mayor I will introduce a 20 percent local procurement criteria for all city council tenders for digital and technology services.

“Local companies will still need to compete on price and expertise, but the fact they are local will count for something. This policy will add to the attractiveness of doing business in our city.

“It makes sense for the council to back local companies using our procurement policy. It keeps council expenditure in the region, grows jobs and encourages ICT businesses to move or set up here.

“I will also introduce a Chief Innovation Officer to the Council’s Executive Leadership team who is focused on smart city growth and technology-based platforms for local government infrastructure.

“Putting innovation at the heart of the council will be great for local business and ratepayers. Council needs to increase our use of technology to improve our services and relevancy to Wellingtonians.

“My experience setting up and growing a business in this city means I know many of the challenges the emerging ICT sector faces. As Mayor I will be an ally to local businesses and ensure that the Council is providing the right support and environment to grow our local economy.”

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