The Welsh Government has recently published a new Welsh procurement policy note (WPPN) and adopted procurement policy notes (PPN) from the UK government.
This was published under the 2016 to 2021 administration of the Welsh Government
Welsh procurement policy note (WPPN 01/21) on sourcing steel in major construction and infrastructure projects in Wales
The Welsh Government has published a Welsh procurement policy note (WPPN 01/21) on sourcing steel in major construction and infrastructure projects in Wales. This WPPN addresses public procurement actions to support the strategically important steel sector in the UK. It provides guidance to contracting authorities on how to use the procurement life cycle to identify any opportunity to support the UK steel industry, to maximise the socio economic and environmental impact of the contract delivered.
WPPN 01/21 replaces a previous procurement advice note published in 2018.
Procurement policy note (PPN 01/21): Procurement in an emergency
Procurement policy note (PPN 01/21) from the UK government, reminds contracting authorities of the options available to them when undertaking procurements in an emergency. This includes extremely urgent procurements required by the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This PPN builds on the guidance in ‘PPN 01/20 - Responding to COVID-19’. It includes further information on the commercial risks inherent in direct awards without competition.
This PPN is being adopted by the Welsh Government and we encourage the Welsh public sector to do the same.
Please note that WPPN 03/20 is the Welsh equivalent of PPN 08/20 from the UK government.
If you have any queries, please contact the Commercial Policy mailbox: CommercialPolicy@gov.wales
Procurement policy note 11/20: Reserving below threshold procurements
Procurement policy note (PPN) 11/20 from the UK government, sets out the options that may be considered by contracting authorities when procuring contracts for goods, services and works with a value below the applicable thresholds.
We are adopting the PPN and encourage the Welsh public sector to do likewise. We are considering whether the scope of the PPN can be extended for Wales which would require us to publish a WPPN.
If you have any queries, please e-mail the Commercial Policy mailbox: CommercialPolicy@gov.wales
PPN on GPA and TCA
Following the UK’s exit from the EU, the UK became a member in its own right to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). The UK also entered into an agreement with the EU, known as the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA).
Contracting authorities should continue to follow the Public Contracts Regulations (PCR) 2015, Utilities Contracts Regulations (UCR) 2016 and/or the Concession Contracts Regulations (CCR) 2016, including continuing to advertise on Sell2Wales. They should also take note of the additional procurement requirements in the GPA and TCA, please see Procurement Policy Note 02/21: The WTO GPA and the UK-EU TCA for further information.
WPPN activity until after the election
On 25 March, the Welsh Government will enter pre-election period. This means that we are unable to publish any new WPPNs until after the election on 6 May.