The Government’s current consultation on the UK Transposition of new EU Procurement Directives via the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016 is due to end in ten days' time.
This consultation, which began on 21 August 2015 and ends on 18th September, concerns the UK transposition of the revised Utilities Directive, one of the three EU Directives on Public Procurement, which came into force in April 2014. Member States have been allowed two years to transpose the Directives into national law.
The Public Sector Directive has already been transposed by the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. The Government is now consulting on the draft Regulations transposing the Utilities Directive with the aim of bringing these into effect by April 2016. The new Directive 2014/25/EU2 on procurement by entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors, replaces the 2004 Directive for Utilities Contracts.
Consultation on the draft Regulations transposing the (new) Concessions Directive, which also covers bodies subject to the Utilities Directive, is being conducted in parallel.
The consultation is seeking comments from interested stakeholders, including utilities and other industry representatives, and possibly suppliers, to ascertain whether the draft regulations effectively transpose the Directive, and whether they do so in the best way.
Questions the utilities are being invited to comment on in the consultation include:
- Would an option for Utilities to apply for an exemption directly be helpful?
- Do Utilities consider that the estimates of costs and benefits are reasonable?
- Do Utilities consider it would be possible to monetise any of the other benefits, and, if so, would they provide estimates, where appropriate?
The mechanism whereby utilities can apply for an exemption from the rules, where they operate under competitive conditions and where access to the market is not restricted, has been maintained in 2014/25/EU. There have been some minor changes to improve the decision making process following an application, but the essentials remain the same.
The Crown Commercial Service has UK policy responsibility for transposing the new procurement Directives.
Click here to access the consultation document
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