On 24 February 2025, the Procurement Act 2023 (‘the Act’) came into force. The aim of this legislation was to consolidate and simplify the various parts of the previous procurement regime and to create a more flexible system with enhanced transparency.
Previously, one of the main pieces of legislation that governed procurement was the Public Contract Regulations 2015 (‘the PCR’), which still applies to tenders that commenced before 24 February 2025.
We are starting to see contracts that are coming up for retender that are now being governed by the Act rather than the PCR. Additionally in 2026 we have started to see the first cases that have been through the Courts, where the process is governed by the Act and we expect to see many more in the coming months.
Below is a timely summary of the changes that need to be taken into consideration by suppliers when tendering and retendering with the public sector and when considering challenging decisions made.
MEAT to MAT
The requirement to prioritise price was removed under the Act and the focus is now on the Most Advantageous Tender (‘MAT’) rather than Most Economically Advantageous Tender (‘MEAT’) award criteria. For suppliers this means the focus is now on various other factors including social value, sustainability and innovation.
This is a beneficial change for suppliers as it allows for contracting authorities to have more freedom to decide which tender is most suitable for their organisation by taking a holistic approach, rather than through the narrow lens of cost. SME suppliers will also now be able to compete more effectively with larger suppliers, in a way that they may not have been able to previously.
Threshold changes
The concept of thresholds is not new, but bidders should be aware that the level of the following thresholds were reduced on 1 January 2026 meaning that an increasing number of contracts will be regulated by the Act.
The threshold levels are reviewed every two years. The latest thresholds are inclusive of VAT:
| Contract Type | Old (2024-2025) | Current (2026-2027) |
| Central Government – Goods & Services | £139,688 | £135,018 |
| Sub-Central Authorities – Goods & Services | £214,904 | £207,720 |
| Utilities – Goods & Services | £429,809 | £415,440 |
| Work Contracts (All Bodies) | £5,372,609 | £5,193,000 |
| Concessions (Works or Services) | £5,372,609 | £5,193,000 |
| Light Touch Regime (Education & Social Services) | £663,540 | £663,540 |
Standstill period
Suppliers need to be very alive to the tight timescales in which a challenge may be brought. The standstill period is a very brief period after the contracting authority publishes the contract award notice during which it is temporarily prevented from entering into the contract with the successful bidder.
This has changed from 10 calendar days under the PCR to 8 working days under the Act. The standstill period allows an unsuccessful bidder (limited) time to review the decision and consider issuing a legal challenge if it believes there are suitable grounds.
If a legal challenge is raised during the standstill period, the principle of automatic suspension applies. In order for the automatic suspension to be invoked, the supplier needs to issue a claim and inform the contracting authority of the claim during the standstill period. The key change under the Act is that these steps must both be done during the standstill period, whereas previously this could have been done after the standstill had expired as long as the contract had not been entered into. Under the Act there is no automatic suspension if the standstill period has expired, but this may be extended if the contracting authority issues a new contract award notice. In the transition period from the PCR to the Act, suppliers need to be clear on which regime the tender is being run under and not be caught out on timings.
Automatic suspension is a strong tool, preventing the contracting authority from entering into the contract but the authority can apply to the court to lift the suspension. We expect to see more decisions made by the courts regarding automatic suspensions, but we also expect the number of automatic suspensions that are lifted to remain high under the Act, as was the case under the PCR.
Debarment list
Another major change was the introduction of a public, central debarment list that suppliers can be added to, which has the effect of preventing a supplier from participating in any procurements or being awarded any public contracts for up to 5 years.
Suppliers can be added to the list for various reasons, including breaches of the law and professional misconduct. The list is maintained by the Procurement Review Unit.
Suppliers can only be added to the list once a formal investigation has been carried out by a public authority which considers whether a supplier meets any of the exclusion grounds. They will also need to consider whether the circumstances that led to the supplier being investigated are likely to reoccur or continue. Once the authority’s investigation has concluded, only a government minister can make the decision as to whether the supplier meets any of the exclusion grounds and, if they do, whether they should be added to the debarment list.
As at the date of this article, no suppliers have been added to the list. If suppliers are added to the list, there is an opportunity to appeal that decision.
Key takeaways to consider
The critical take away for suppliers is being live to the narrow window of the standstill period, so time is of the essence as potential remedies are far more limited if challenges are brought outside this timeframe. If you have any concerns or queries about how a contracting authority has conducted a procurement process (e.g. lack of transparency, unclear/unfair criteria or inconsistent scoring) it is crucially important that you seek legal advice as urgently as possible as any delays could hamper your ability to successfully issue a challenge.