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20 January 2023 / Fleur Turrington , Jennifer Clarke , Aimee Cook
Issue: 8009 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Public
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The Procurement Bill—substantial progress or missed opportunity?

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Fleur Turrington, Jennifer Clarke & Aimee Cook work through the pros & cons of the Procurement Bill

  • The government has chosen to consolidate procurement regulations into a new act currently passing through Parliament.
  • The new Bill will undoubtedly bring some pros, including the move away from awarding contracts on an ‘advantageous’ basis, opening up for a wider range of suppliers. It also plans to change the mandatory standstill period.
  • On the other hand, new regulations around the provision of assessment summaries, as well as persistent barriers to SME participation, could highlight a missed opportunity for reform.

While the UK could continue following the four distinct sets of procurement regulations (the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, SI 2015/102; the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016, SI 2016/274; the Concession Contracts Regulations 2016, SI 2016/273; and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011, SI 2011/1848), the government has chosen post-Brexit to consolidate the regulations into a new Act of Parliament.

The Procurement Bill is of interest

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