At around £290 billion every year, public sector procurement accounts for around a third of all public expenditure in the UK.[1] EU-based laws continue to apply to government procurement: procurement is governed by the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Part 3 of the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015,[2] and (in Scotland) the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations of 2015 [3] and 2016.[4] These regulations implement EU law, which applied in the UK prior to Brexit, and also contain rules known as the "Lord Young Rules" promoting access for small and medium enterprise (SMEs) to public sector contracts, based on Lord Young's Review Growing Your Business, published in 2013.[5]
The Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011, also derived from EU law, apply to defence procurement.[6]
Health commissioners in England are exempt from the Lord Young Rules when procuring clinical services and these rules do not apply in Wales (i.e. to wholly or mainly devolved functions).[5]
Before the United Kingdom joined the European Communities in 1973 there was no significant legislation governing public procurement.[7]
New legislation, the Procurement Act 2023, received royal assent on 26 October 2023,[8] with implementation planned for 24 February 2025.
- ^
This article incorporates text published under the British Open Government Licence: Cabinet Office, Procurement Policy Note – National Procurement Policy Statement: Action Note, PPN 05/21, published 3 June 2021, accessed 21 June 2021
- ^ Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015, Part 3
- ^ Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015
- ^ Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2016
- ^ a b Local Government Association, 'Lord Young' reforms, accessed 11 September 2016
- ^ UK Legislation, Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011
- ^ Arrowsmith, S. (2016), The implications of Brexit for the law on public and utilities procurement, Achilles, p. 4
- ^ "Parliamentary Bills: Procurement Act 2023". Retrieved 12 November 2023.
