The Public Procurement Review Service allows government suppliers and potential government suppliers to raise concerns anonymously about potential poor public sector procurement practice. The Public Procurement Review Service investigates and aims to resolve enquiries that satisfy certain criteria, which are set out below. They welcome enquiries from suppliers who have concerns about the conduct of a procurement process which they have been part of, or which they wish to participate in. They also accept enquiries from organisations and trade bodies that represent suppliers. Learn more on their website.
Enquiries must relate to specific procurement and must have taken place in the last two years and either:
Concerns an English contracting authority as defined by the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.
Concerns a supply chain issue that relates to a contract let by an English contracting authority as defined by the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.
Concerns the late payment (i.e. not paid within 30 calendar days or any earlier payment date as stated in the contract terms) of valid and undisputed invoices on a public sector contract. This would also include late payment issues within the supply chain.
Secondly the enquiry should concern procurement practice, and should highlight a potential conflict with best practice or the Public Contract Regulations 2015 (2006 for older contracts). This can be at any stage of the procurement. For example:
The management of contracts, including payments to suppliers and subcontractors The role of the Public Procurement Review Service is to investigate suitable cases raised to them and to highlight improvements that could be made to procurement practices.
It’s a free service and suppliers can remain anonymous, if they want to. In 2019, 100% of the service’s recommendations were accepted by contracting authorities. Suppliers have been helped to reclaim over £8 million from more than 350 late payment cases, and the service has a 100% success rate for releasing payments on undisputed invoices. - Extract from Crown Commercial Service
Use the Public Procurement Review Service: publicprocurementreview@cabinetoffice.gov.uk or 0345 010 3503