So that makes it OK to dish out contracts to your mates sans competition?
I didn`t say that.
I said that, if no public sector body spends money under the contract, it`s worth the sum total of nothing.
We have many framework contracts, some are local (County),some are UK wide,some are EU wide, where many organisations can benefit from a collective price on products.
That goes from printer paper to state of the art tech.
We can buy robotic heart valve kits for the same price as our colleagues in Germany, France etc.
Nobody gets them cheaper or gets to cut their own deals.
Generically this is a good thing as lots of research and development in the early stages is done within the NHS by the private sector/supplier.
Some contracts oblige you to buy X amount of kit if you sign up to them.
Other contracts offer volume discounts.
Some offer prompt payment discount on invoice totals.
All perfectly legit, audited and above board.
However if organisations don`t buy the products then the supplier makes/earns nothing.
A contract, whilst legally binding in many aspects, is not a "blank cheque".