These are my remarks at the seminar on Brexit and public procurement held by the Centre of European Law of King's College London on 29 November 2016, to which I was invited by Michael Bowsher QC and Prof Andrea Biondi.

1. The Impact of Brexit on Business in European
Public Sector Markets; the Future Shape of
Procurement Law in Britain and Beyond
Dr Albert Sanchez-Graells
Senior Lecturer in Law & Member of the European
Commission Stakeholder Expert Group (2015/18)
KCL CEL, London, 29 November 2016
29 November 2016
1Future Shape of Procurement Law in Britain & Beyond

2. Focus of my Remarks
• [British] procurement reform as utopia?
• What can be lost in a ‘Very British Model’?
• What is likely to happen w PCR2015 post-Brexit?
• What coordination can we expect / should exist
between UK (Eng) & EU law post-Brexit?
• In the longer run, how can / should public
procurement law be reformed?
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3. What can be lost in a ‘Very British Model’?*
• Incentives for cross-border tendering (ie impact
on import / export and change of value chains)
• Reduced scope for cross-border collaboration,
which is an emerging trend (w EU & beyond)
• Difficulties in the negotiation of international
agreements (GPA) and in securing international
funding for (large infrastructure) projects
* Borrowed from Sarah Hannaford QC 3
29 November 2016

4. What is likely to happen with the Public
Contracts Regulations 2015 post-Brexit?
• Who knows – really
• Short of repeal, immediate significant change is
unlikely & substitution not on top of priorities
• PCR2015 likely to remain in books after Brexit
• Maybe w exclusion of remedies (as per Arrowsmith)
• Maybe w minor reform to deactivate some
restrictions (‘Swiss cheese’ regulatory reform)
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5. What coordination can we expect / should
exist between UK (Eng) & EU law post-Brexit?
• Formally, highly dependent on model of Brexit
• Substantively, more dependent on structure of
enforcement (ie ‘no remedies, no coordination’)
• Ideally, substantive coordination should remain a
feature of the future system
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6. In the longer run, how can / should public
procurement law be reformed?
• To address common criticisms / constraints
• Potential of 2014 EU rules is unexploited & not
many aspects require (major) regulatory reform
• Need to invest heavily on
• eProcurement
• Upgrading public sector skillset
• Effective public enforcement
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7. Further reading
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8. Thank you for your attention
Be in touch
a.sanchez-graells@bristol.ac.uk
www.howtocrackanut.com
@asanchezgraells
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