Organisations that work with Rugby Borough Council are being reminded of new changes to public procurement regulations.
On the 24 February 2025, the Procurement Act 2023 introduces changes to public procurement regulations.
All organisations that supply goods, services or works to Rugby Borough Council will need to know about these changes.
Here are a few key points:
The Central Digital Platform: This new electronic platform will be a central repository for procurement information, simplifying the process for suppliers by allowing them to enter information once and then reuse it in multiple tenders. Suppliers will need to be registered on the Central Digital Platform in order to bid/tender for Council opportunities. The Central Digital Platform will be open to supplier registration on 24 February 2025. You can get ready for registration by viewing the How To videos and guides available on the dedicated GOV.UK supplier page.
Enhanced Transparency: The Act increases transparency by requiring the Council and many other public sector organisations to publish more notices about their procurements.
Competitive Flexible Procedure: This new procurement procedure gives the Council and many other public sector organisations more flexibility to design procurement processes to fit their needs - potentially including stages such as dialogue, negotiations and product demonstrations.
Procurement Review Unit (PRU): The PRU will monitor compliance with the Act and investigate patterns of non-compliance. While it doesn’t provide
direct remedies, it offers an affordable avenue for complaints.
Exclusion and Debarment Regime: The Act introduces a new central debarment list managed by the PRU. The list can exclude suppliers from bidding for public contracts for up to five years for reasons such as tax evasion or poor contract performance. The list will also exclude certain suppliers from bidding for public contracts owing to acts committed by their connected persons and key subcontractors. Suppliers have the right to appeal against proposed debarments.
Open Frameworks: These are a series of framework contracts awarded successively on similar terms - thus allowing new suppliers to join and therefore bid for opportunities during the lifetime of the series. This promotes competition and prevents suppliers from being locked out of opportunities.
Contract Management Provisions: These will require the Council and many other public sector organisations to pay undisputed invoices within 30 days. These organisations will also have to agree key performance indicators (KPIs) with suppliers for new contracts worth at least £5,000,000 and publication of Contract Performance Notices where applicable.
Evaluation Criteria: Tender evaluation will now be based on the ‘most advantageous tender’ rather than the ‘most economically advantageous tender’. This change emphasises that contracts do not need to be awarded based on the lowest price. Factors such as quality and social value may also be considered, an approach already taken by the Council.
Contract Award Process: Instead of standstill letters, suppliers will receive detailed assessment summaries explaining why their bids were successful or
not. The tender standstill period has been adjusted from ten calendar days to eight working days. Standstill will now commence on the publication of the Contract Award Notice.
Performance Transparency: Contracts worth at least £5,000,000 will require the publication of the contract itself and its most important key performance indicators (KPIs). This will enhance transparency but may also pose reputational risks for suppliers.
If you want to sell to the council after 24 February 2025 and bid for contracting opportunities, we recommend you look at the following guides and videos published by the Government Commercial Function, which is part of the Civil Service and the Cabinet Office:
If your organisation is a small and medium sized enterprise (SME) and/or a voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE), we also recommend you
watch these videos:
These videos and guides explain the key changes to the current public procurement regulations.
Contracts awarded or tenders commenced prior to 24 February 2025 will be subject to the requirements of the previous legislation, namely the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and Concession Contracts Regulations 2016.