Minutes for the fourth Trade Specialised Committee on Public Procurement under the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement meeting (HTML)
Updated 21 January 2025
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皇冠体育app fourth meeting of the Trade Specialised Committee on Public Procurement under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) between the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (UK) took place on 3 October 2024 in Brussels (with some participants connecting via videoconference).
Agenda item 1 鈥� Opening remarks and adoption of the agenda
皇冠体育app EU and the UK (the Parties) both delivered their opening remarks and the agenda was adopted.
Agenda item 2 鈥� Update on developments in the EU and the UK
皇冠体育app UK presented the Procurement Act, focusing on聽 developments that have occurred since last year鈥檚 Committee. 皇冠体育app new procurement regime is expected to go live in February 2025. 皇冠体育app EU expressed concerns about possible risks concerning subcontracting provisions and enquired about the status of the Government Communications Headquarters. 皇冠体育app UK provided the EU with clarifications relating to the subcontracting provisions in the Procurement Act, and confirmed that the Government Communications Headquarters does not fall within the scope of the Procurement Act for any of their procurement, as it would be contrary to the essential national security interests of the UK.聽
皇冠体育app EU gave a presentation on the procurement part of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR), which aims to provide a level playing field within the EU. 皇冠体育app EU confirmed that the notification of the FSR mechanism is triggered on the basis of whether a company has received foreign subsidies or not 鈥� and not whether the company in question is based within or outside of the EU. While the UK was concerned about the impact on UK firms, the EU explained that there is no discrimination.
皇冠体育app EU presented the International Procurement Instrument (IPI), stressing its application to non-covered procurement only. 皇冠体育app UK asked about the relationship between the IPI, FSR and trade defence instruments. 皇冠体育app EU explained that these tools are fundamentally different 鈥� the IPI aims to open third countries鈥� procurement markets, the FSR to achieve fair competition for procurement tenders within the EU, and trade defence instruments to protect the EU market from dumped or subsidised goods causing injury to the EU industry.聽聽
皇冠体育app Parties discussed sustainability in public procurement: 皇冠体育app EU presented the public procurement provisions under the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA), focusing on the criteria of sustainability and resilience. 皇冠体育app EU explained that the provisions are very detailed and the implementing acts will provide more information on the application of the non-price criteria but that EU Member States can ask for further guidance if needed. 皇冠体育app UK outlined its continued implementation and promotion of sustainable procurement practices across the Public Sector, including new terms and conditions for public contracts, and government buying standards (to be published in 2025). 皇冠体育app UK explained that while its approach does not introduce mandatory practices, it does provide a certain degree of standardisation for public entities. Both Parties might follow up with questions.
Finally, the parties discussed Artificial Intelligence (AI) in procurement. 皇冠体育app UK presented its policy note on improving transparency of AI use in procurement. 皇冠体育app UK explained that it does not wish to reduce or prohibit the use of AI technology in procurement but underlined the importance of being able to identify when the technology has been used. 皇冠体育app EU presented its proposal for standard contractual clauses for the procurement of AI by public organisations which aims to increase the uptake of AI in the public sector.
Agenda item 3 - Implementation of the TCA Public Procurement Provisions
皇冠体育app EU raised an issue concerning the UK鈥檚 VAT registration requirements potentially impairing EU suppliers participating in G-Cloud. 皇冠体育app UK explained that the issue was a misunderstanding due to a mistake in the guidance originally provided to the bidders and that clarifications had been issued to the affected bidders who had applied to join G-Cloud. Having a UK VAT number is thus not a requirement for non-UK companies to provide cloud-based services in the UK. 皇冠体育app EU highlighted that the relevant procuring entity still refers to official guidelines indicating that EU based suppliers need to be VAT registered in the UK. 皇冠体育app Parties agreed to follow up on this.