Procurement process that dumped Green Shed to be audited

The ACT Auditor-General Michael Harris revealed on Friday his office would undertake an audit of the procurement of reusable facility services in Mugga Lane and Mitchell after the change in contract sparked community outcry.

The aim of the audit will be to assess the probity of the process and will focus on how the Transport Canberra and City Services Directorate planned and conducted the procurement.

The procurement began in 2023 and ended in March 2024 when The Green Shed found out it had lost the contract to run the two recycling and reselling depots.

The new contract was awarded to the St Vincent de Paul Society Canberra/Goulburn.

The audit is expected to be completed and tabled in the ACT Legislative Assembly by the first quarter of the new financial year (2024-25).

The Green Shed co-owner Charlie Bigg-Wither welcomed the news of the audit but said the timeline meant the report would be released after the facilities had been handed over to Vinnies on May 30.

"It has ramifications if the process wasn't right," he said.

"It is good news, but it's not good news if we have to change over. What do we do if they reverse decision?

"It's not something you can really come back from."

The audit will examine whether the directorate's planning for the procurement met the policy objectives for the services being procured and created a process that was fair, transparent and equitable.

It will look at the way the directorate communicated with potential service providers and it will assess the providers' responses against the evaluation criteria.

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The audit will assess whether the process followed the ACT government rules and requirements for procurement and whether value for money was appropriately considered.

City Services Minister Tara Cheyne previously said the directorate's communication about the tender was "regrettable" and not up to standards.

NoWaste chief executive Dr Margaret Kitchin previously said: "the successful tenderer needed to demonstrate the greatest impact and support for the community, rather than being 'best value for money' and Vinnies were successful in demonstrating this."

The Green Shed closed its City Walk store on April 14.