Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Procurement definition

What does Procurement mean? Procurement describes how organisations plan, source, tender for and contract for works, goods and services, including appointing contractors, consultants and suppliers on construction projects. In practice it spans private purchasing and public procurement subject to statutory rules. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, public procurement is governed by the Procurement Act 2023 (which replaces the Public Contracts Regulations 2015), alongside sector-specific regimes (including utilities, concessions and defence/security) and guidance. Scotland applies the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 and the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014. In Ireland, EU-derived regulations apply (for example S.I. No. 284/2016, S.I. No. 286/2016 and S.I. No. 203/2017)....

Discontinuing Public Procurements: Authority Discretion, Limits, Challenges, Remedies and Notification Duties under PCR 2015 and the Procurement Act 2023

Published by a LexisNexis Local Government expert

Practice notes

STOP PRESS

From 24 February 2025, the principal provisions of the procurement Act 2023 (PA 2023) are in force. Any procurement initiated on or after that date must proceed under PA 2023, while procedures commenced under the previous framework—the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015), the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016, the Concession Regulations 2016, and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011—must continue to be conducted and managed under those rules. See Practice Note: Introduction to the Procurement Act 2023—PA 2023.

PCR 2015 as assimilated law

PCR 2015 are EU-derived domestic legislation and therefore constitute assimilated law under sections 2 and 6 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. For practical guidance on the status and construction of assimilated law, see Practice Note: Assimilated law.

Introduction

A contracting authority may decide to terminate an award procedure. This Practice Note covers:

the discretion to discontinue and when exercising that discretion can be contested
the effect of discontinuation on earlier breaches
the procedural steps an authority must take when discontinuing
the route for challenging a discontinuation decision and the consequences of a successful challenge

The discretion to discontinue

Extent

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Andrew Millross

Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP

Andrew is a Partner in Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP, specialising in all aspects of procurement and construction. He has been with the firm since 1997 and before then spent 7 years in-house in local government. Andrew also has a background in governance and public/private partnerships.Andrew wrote the National Housing Federation 'Guide to the EU procurement rules' (2nd edition published 2007) a practical guide for registered providers of social housing on what contracts are covered by the rules, what the rules require and what practical strategies can be adopted to comply with them. He was the editor and main author of the 'NHF Contract Management guide' (published January 2010) and was the legal author of the NHF book 'Procurement in Practice; avoiding the pitfalls and getting the best result' (published 2013). Andrew also led the team from Anthony Collins Solicitors LLP that was...

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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