Ladies and Gentlemen

“SPVA exists to serve the serving and veteran communities, and the quality of SPVA’s  commercial partner is a vital component in maintaining the Military Covenant.  Our youngest veterans are but 18, and our oldest is 112 (Henry Allingham born in June 1896), so we span the length of society and will have a vital role to play in supporting our veterans for many decades to come. 

“For those still serving, the continuing pressure of operations means that they both need and deserve the very highest level of support that we can give them.  At the same time, society at large expects ever-higher standards, so we must always strive to do better tomorrow what we have done well today. The challenge is always to do things better, cheaper, and faster - a significant test for us all.

“With that in mind, it is always good to have a success to celebrate, and the signing of this 3-year interim contract undoubtedly marks a success.

“The competing of this contract has been a long and rigorous process, and it is a measure of the success of that process that we had a credible contest right up to the end. This new contract will commence in November this year and will enable the Agency to both improve its service delivery and provide a firm baseline for a longer-term contract from 2012 onwards.

“Congratulations go to all bidders on the quality and integrity of their submissions, but in the end EDS HP emerged as the winner, promising robust performance and value for money in all areas.

“We have a long history of working with EDS - they understand our business, and have proven themselves time and again.  For that reason it gives me great pleasure to be here today to witness the signature of this 3-year interim contract with EDS to continue to support the SPVA, and hence the Nation’s service personnel, both past and present. 

“Congratulations to Sir Rob Fry and his Team.”