We have reached an exciting point in public procurement reform as the Procurement Bill 2022 has been formally introduced in the House of Lords. This follows the Green Paper consultation led by the Cabinet Office and its response published in December 2021. The overarching goals of the Bill are to speed up and simplify our procurement processes, place value for money at their heart, generate social value and unleash opportunities for small businesses, charities and social enterprises to innovate in public service delivery. In the recent Queen’s Speech which announced the Bill, it was stated, “Now that we no longer have to abide by bureaucratic EU rules and regulations, our intention is to create a simpler regime that works better for the UK, reducing costs and improving productivity". 

This is just the beginning of the legislative process with the new legal regime not coming into force until at least 2023 (with a six month notice period before it 'goes live'). A copy of the Bill can be found here. We will be tracking the progress of the Bill and will publish our comments on the different sections over the coming weeks and months highlighting the practical implications of the proposed changes. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss any particular topic covered by the Bill in more detail.