Member

Although we are clear that employers who support our reservists deserve recognition and encouragement, Amendment 45 risks turning public procurement into an indirect test of an employers’ internal HR policies, even where those policies have no connection to the goods and services being procured. That would be a significant and ineffective extension of procurement policy. The Procurement Act 2023 is designed to deliver a simple, transparent and effective procurement system. We believe that the amendment would cut across that objective by adding another mandatory policy consideration for contracting authorities to interpret and apply.