Policy background
At around £300 billion every year, public procurement accounts for a third of all public expenditure. By improving the way public procurement is regulated, the Government can not only save the taxpayer money, but spread opportunity and improve public services, across every region of the country.
	The procurement of goods, services and works by public bodies and some private utilities is an area of law previously governed by EU Directives. The Procurement Act 2023 repeals the Regulations which implemented this regime and replaces these with a single new public procurement regime with a number of sector specific features.
	The Government’s policy objectives for these reforms were to speed up and simplify public procurement processes, place value for money at their heart and create greater opportunities for small businesses and social enterprises to innovate public service delivery.
	The Government believes that the previous regimes for awarding public contracts were too restrictive and complex for buyers and suppliers alike. The Government’s objective is that the new regime is simpler and more flexible, to make it better able to adapt to the fast-moving environment in which businesses operate. Markets and commercial practices are constantly evolving and it is the Government’s aim that the new regulatory framework drives a culture of continuous improvement to support more resilient, diverse and innovative supply chains.
	The United Kingdom, in its own right following its exit from the EU, joined the World Trade Organisation’s Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) on 1 January 2021. This guarantees access to £1.3 trillion in overseas public procurement markets providing major export opportunities for British businesses. In designing the new regulatory framework, the Government is committed to compliance with the GPA and its principles of fairness, impartiality, transparency and non-discrimination. The Government will continue to maintain and build on the UK’s existing international relationships and new bilateral trade agreements.
	The legislation regulates public procurements from inception throughout the duration of the contract - from the point at which a covered public body (contracting authority) is considering how and what to procure, through the process of procurement and contract award, up to the point at which the resulting contract ends. It also provides remedies for breach of statutory duty.
	In developing the new regime, the Government has engaged with over 500 stakeholders and organisations through many hundreds of hours of discussions and workshops. This has included stakeholders from central and local government, the education and health sectors, small, medium and large businesses, charities, social enterprises, academics and procurement lawyers.