Procurement in a nutshell – new home for Government guidance
10th June, 2016
The Crown Commercial Service (CCS) and the Cabinet Office have relocated the guidance for the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016 and Concession Contracts Regulations 2016 to a new webpage.
What’s new?
The Crown Commercial Service (CCS) and the Cabinet Office have relocated the guidance for the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016 and Concession Contracts Regulations 2016 to a new webpage. The guidance can be viewed here.
Previously, the material was together with the procurement policy notes, which can be viewed separately here.
What does the guidance contain?
The Government has produced handbooks which cover the main rule changes for both the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and the Concessions Contracts Regulations 2016. This information is supplemented by a package of more detailed, subject-specific guides in order to aid implementation of the regulations.
The CCS has also developed a free e-Learning resource covering the main changes within the regulations. This has been designed to support continuous learning and is available to all public sector procurement professionals. To access the CCS learning hub, please click here.
Finally, the Government has also provided links to training materials which were used in face-to-face training sessions, delivered to help raise awareness of the new EU procurement directives.
Why is this important?
The reorganisation and relocation of the procurement guidance coincided with and marks the completion of the transposition process of the EU directives into UK national law.
Member States were obliged to notify the transposition of the new public procurement rules by 18 April 2016.
It happens that, on 26 May 2016, the Commission sent letters of formal notice to 21 Member States for failing to transpose the EU directives into their national legal order in a timely manner. Click here to see the list of Member States at fault.
Regardless of the non-transposition by these Member States, the UK’s implementation means that all UK contracting authorities must comply with their obligations under the regulations. The government sources are a useful tool in assisting contracting authorities with ongoing compliance measures.
How can I find out more?
If you have any queries on the issues raised or on any aspect of procurement, please contact us via our procurement hotline on 0191 204 4464.
Please note that this briefing is designed to be informative, not advisory and represents our understanding of English law and practice as at the date indicated. We would always recommend that you should seek specific guidance on any particular legal issue.
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