Pre-procurement considerations—pre-PA 2023

This practical guidance relates to the pre-Procurement Act 2023 regime

This subtopic contains a range of archived resources relevant to public procurement exercises commenced before the Procurement Act 2023 (PA 2023) came into force on 24 February 2025. In-scope procurements begun on or after this date are generally governed by PA 2023. For guidance on PA 2023, see: Procurement Act 2023—overview.

Under the transitional and savings provisions for PA 2023, the previous regimes continue to apply to the extent necessary to allow contracting authorities to complete and manage procurements commenced before PA 2023 came into force.

This subtopic focuses on some of the key considerations for contracting authorities before starting a public procurement exercise, with particular focus on public procurement procedures under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015), SI 2015/102.

Public procurement law—pre-PA 2023

The pre-PA 2023 public procurement regime comprises a set of regulations (now repealed, subject to the relevant savings and transitional provisions), which implemented a series of EU public procurement directives in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as follows:

1. •

   PCR 2015 addressing contracts awarded by central...