Sep 01 2014
Local authority data protection - room for improvement
The Information Commissioner's Office (the ICO) reveals that Local Authorities have more to do in protecting the public's personal data.
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Aug 20 2014
Pros and cons: the legalities of local authority lending
Helen Randall's latest article in Room 151 examines the increase in local authorities funding regeneration projects; how it is lawful and what they need to be aware of.
Aug 11 2014
National Audit Office raises concerns over IT contract management
The National Audit Office has flagged some concerns to HM Revenue & Customs in relation to its management and replacement of its Aspire IT Contract.
Aug 03 2014
Armageddon for social care commissioners?
Paul McDermott examines whether social care commissioners are being dealt a fair hand and how the new procurement governance will change social care procurement.
Jul 17 2014
Contractors sign up to collaborative working with public bodies on PFI / PPP projects
HM Treasury for the last few years has been encouraging the public sector to focus on making cost savings from their existing PFI and PPP contracts.
Jun 23 2014
Automatic suspensions - power to the public authority?
A recent case illustrates that public authorities can still be successful in lifting the automatic suspension of a contract award on the issue of a procurement challenge even if there are triable issues at stake.
Jun 17 2014
Making the most of local authority property assets
Earlier this month, the Audit Commission published an interesting report on "managing council property assets" using data from the Value for Money profiles.
Jun 02 2014
ECJ confirms Strict Interpretation of the In-house Exemption
Public authorities are increasingly using alternative business models to create more efficient ways of delivering services, especially in these times of austerity. When developing these models, it is key to understand at an early stage when a public procurement procedure is required and when the 'in-house exemption' allows a contract to be awarded directly.
May 21 2014
Judgement in Pizzarotti case sows doubt for property deals
The debate as to when property deals in the public sector should be classified as a "public works contracts" meaning they have to be put out to tender under EU rules and procured has arisen yet again as a result of Advocate General Nils Wahl's opinion in the case of Impresa Pizzarotti v Comune di Bari C-213/13 which was issued on 15 May.
May 15 2014
Count down to clearer state aid rules
On 1st July the European Commission will take a major step on its journey to modernise state aid law with the adoption of a new General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER).
Apr 15 2014
Does employee ownership work as a model for delivering public services?
Employee ownership was brought into the spotlight in the recent Budget with the Chancellor announcing a series of tax reliefs aimed at the promotion of employee ownership as means of running a company. These include income tax exemptions for bonuses paid to employees of employee-owned companies and an increase in the maximum value of shares that employees can acquire under share incentive plans. But what is employee ownership and how can it be used in the delivery of public services?
Apr 02 2014
Green light for New Directive on Procurement of Public Contracts
Following delays to the implementation timetable in 2013, we are pleased to confirm that the new EU Procurement Directive will now come into force on 17 April 2014 after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union on 28 March 2014.
Mar 24 2014
OGC Model ICT Contract replaced by New Model Services Contract
The new Model Services Contract, which replaces version 2.3 of the OGC Model ICT Contract, should be used with immediate effect as the basis of the draft contract for all procurements for IT delivery services and Business Process Outsourcing services with a value of £10 million or more.
Mar 10 2014
Big Data - the opportunities and challenges
Much has been written about the value that can be derived from harnessing Big Data – data sets that are so large and complex that they are too difficult to manage through traditional management tools.
Mar 04 2014
Levy cuts to help build your own home
For most people jobs and homes are a key priority so the Department for Communities and Local Government's announcement that self-builders will be exempt from community infrastructure levy looks like good news.
