EU Public Procurement Regulations
What they apply to
The BBC is obliged to operate within The Public Procurement Regulations which enact EU Directives that govern the purchase of supplies, services and works by public sponsored organisations. They apply to the acquisition of:
| Items covered | Financial thresholds* | Exclusions | |
| Supplies | Purchase, hire, lease or hire purchase of goods, including equipment, commodities and manufactured products. | £139,893 (excl.VAT). | None |
| Services | Procurement of a wide range of services including (as a sample) maintenance and repair, computer services, management consultancy, building-cleaning and property management. | £139,893 (excl.VAT). | None |
| Works | Procurement of civil engineering and building works, including major refurbishment projects. | £3,497,313 (excl. VAT). | None |
* The financial thresholds apply from 1st January 2008 and apply to the contract value and not the annual cost or budget.
Services covered by the Regulations are divided into part A and part B services, with the full impact of the Regulations applying to part A services only. If you would like to see a full list of part A services click here 
. Some services connected with broadcasting and which relate directly to programme material or broadcasting time, are excluded.
What are they?
Fundamentally, the Regulations are procedures that track and control the procurement process - from alerting suppliers to forthcoming contracts, through to contract award and supplier debriefing. They set in place timescales and specific tasks that provide a common framework applied to the placing of contracts that exceed the financial thresholds prescribed by the Regulations. The aim is to:
- promote and enable free movement of goods and services between EU member states;
- maximise competition in contracts placed by public sponsored organisations;
- ensure open and accountable purchasing procedures and practices; and
- remove technical barriers to trade by harmonising technical standards across member states.
Notices for tenders covered by The Public Procurement Regulations are placed in the Official Journal of the European Union.
