European Union flags fly exterior the European Fee in Brussels, Belgium November 8, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Picture Purchase Licensing Rights
BRUSSELS, Dec 4 (Reuters) – Competitors in public procurement throughout the 27 European Union international locations worsened over the past decade, the European Courtroom of Auditors (ECA) mentioned on Monday, with as a lot as 2 trillion euros ($2.2 trillion) at stake yearly.
ECA mentioned that whereas aggressive public procurement was key to getting good worth for taxpayers’ cash, some 42% of all contracts awarded in 2021 went to single bidders.
“Between 2011 and 2021, fewer and fewer companies competed to offer works, items and companies to public our bodies, whereas the authorities typically approached particular firms straight,” the ECA mentioned in a report.
Auditors mentioned issues included extreme administrative burdens, overly restrictive standards and market focus, including that public procurement procedures received longer over the previous decade and have been tiresome vis-à-vis the non-public sector.
“The share of contracts awarded to SMEs didn’t go up both, and the bottom bidders nonetheless received a majority of contracts, exhibiting that extra strategic facets (e.g. environmental, social and innovation) are hardly ever thought of,” ECA mentioned.
The report expressed concern about transparency of the procedures – a key safeguard towards fraud and corruption – and little procurement between EU states. It mentioned that some 14% of the bloc’s GDP was affected.
It mentioned that, in 2021, Cyprus had the largest share of direct awards of public contracts, single bidding was the best in Slovenia, and France did the least procurement overseas.
Up to now, EU government citied dangers associated to weak public procurement amongst causes to freeze Hungary out of handouts from the bloc. ($1 = 0.9190 euros)
Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska; Modifying by Alison Williams
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