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20 January 2023 / Fleur Turrington , Jennifer Clarke , Aimee Cook
Issue: 8009 / Categories: Features , Procedure & practice , Public
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The Procurement Bill—substantial progress or missed opportunity?

Fleur Turrington, Jennifer Clarke & Aimee Cook work through the pros & cons of the Procurement Bill

  • The government has chosen to consolidate procurement regulations into a new act currently passing through Parliament.
  • The new Bill will undoubtedly bring some pros, including the move away from awarding contracts on an ‘advantageous’ basis, opening up for a wider range of suppliers. It also plans to change the mandatory standstill period.
  • On the other hand, new regulations around the provision of assessment summaries, as well as persistent barriers to SME participation, could highlight a missed opportunity for reform.

While the UK could continue following the four distinct sets of procurement regulations (the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, SI 2015/102; the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016, SI 2016/274; the Concession Contracts Regulations 2016, SI 2016/273; and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011, SI 2011/1848), the government has chosen post-Brexit to consolidate the regulations into a new Act of Parliament.

The Procurement Bill is of interest

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Workplace law firm expands commercial disputes team with senior consultant hire

EIP—Rob Barker

EIP—Rob Barker

IP firm promotes patent attorney to partner

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Banking and restructuring team bolstered by insolvency specialist

NEWS
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Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
The AI revolution is no longer a distant murmur—it’s at the client’s desk. Writing in NLJ this week, Peter Ambrose, CEO of The Partnership and Legalito, warns that the ‘AI chickens’ have ‘come home to roost’, transforming not just legal practice but the lawyer–client relationship itself
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
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