On the 23rd November 2020, the Cabinet Office released a new Procurement Policy Note (“PPN”) confirming one of several changes arising from the Public Procurement (Amendment etc) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020 No.1319) (“2020 Regulations”). As previously reported, with effect from 23:00 on the 31st December 2020 (“the end of the Transition Period”), the…
The Public Procurement (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (SI 2020 No. 1319) (“the 2020 Regulations”) were made on 19th November, in readiness for the expiration of the transition period of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union (the “EU”). The 2020 Regulations revoke and replace the Public Procurement (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (SI…
In a trial of two preliminary issues in Community R4C Ltd -v- Gloucestershire County Council [2020] EWHC 1803 (TCC) the Court held that a consortium was not an Economic Operator under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015). Even if it was, in a hypothetical tender the consortium would not have had the financial standing to pass…
The Updated Playbook The fifth PPN of 2020 draws attention to the recent publication of the Cabinet Office’s Outsourcing Playbook v2.0. The original iteration of the Playbook was designed to help central government departments make better decisions in relation to outsourcing by codifying best practice from across government. The updated version builds on the original…
Considering the principles of transparency and fairness in the exercise of discretion On 17 June 2020, the High Court handed down its judgment in a case with important implications for the contracting authorities undertaking procurement exercises, Stagecoach East Midlands Trains Ltd & Ors v The Secretary of State for Transport [2020] EWHC 1568 (TCC). The…
The information in this article reflects the position at the time of writing. The latest position at 6 February 2020 is detailed here. In this rapidly evolving environment, one would be forgiven for having missed the government’s announcement last week that the UK has given formal confirmation to the EU that the Brexit transition period…
