Barbara Linehan

Two significant European laws have recently come into force which have a significant impact on how bidders from outside the EU, or subsidised by third countries, participate in public procurement processes within the EU. These are: the European Foreign Subsidies Regulation (“FSR”) (Regulation (EU) 2022/2560) which came into force on 12 January 2023; and the International Procurement Instrument (“IPI”) Regulation (EU) 2022/1031 which came into force in August 2022.

European Union, Ireland, United Kingdom February 15 2021 As a result of the EU/UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, much of the access that UK suppliers previously enjoyed to the EU’s procurement markets, and vice versa, has been preserved. The EU and the UK successfully concluded a free trade deal, the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) on 24 December 2020. The agreement was ratified by the UK Parliament on 30 December 2020.

On 6 April 2020 Barniville J delivered a written decision in an interim application brought by an challenger in a procurement challenge. The judgment gives an indication of the approach that may be adopted by the courts in hearing urgent applications arising in procurement proceedings during the current Covid-19 crisis.