A SERIES of reports in Mid West tri-weekly, the Geraldton Guardian, were of interest to The Note this week. Geraldton electrical supplier, Mitchell and Brown, was overlooked for a $1 million state government contract to supply a local school with 700 laptops, despite submitting a tender that was purportedly $100,000 below the accepted bid. When business owner Mr Mitchell queried the judgment, he was informed by the Department of Education and Training that his application wasn’t strong enough, with the contract going to the incumbent provider, Perth-based Winthrop Computers. Mr Mitchell said his initial bid was $50,000 below the winner’s, and a regional buyer preference provision would have given him a further $50,000. Nationals MP Murray Criddle and Shadow Education Minister Peter Collier have weighed into the debate, with Mr Criddle describing his constituents as ‘ropeable’ over the incident. It’s the second time that Mr Mitchell has missed out on the contract.