Horizon Scanner: Energy Planning Infrastructure And Construction April 2026 - Public Procurement

Ireland

CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

The Government published a Critical Infrastructure Bill 2026 and Circulars, following on from the Accelerating Infrastructure Action Plan (PDF 7.8KB). We consider the Bill in our insights post: Accelerating Infrastructure: Critical Infrastructure Bill and Circulars.

EU

DESIGN CONTESTS

In Case C‑888/24, the Advocate General proposes that Directive 2014/24/EU precludes Member States from requiring a mandatory prior hearing of candidates in a design contest, as such a requirement would undermine the principle of anonymity in Article 82. The Opinion further concludes that the EU‑law right to be heard is satisfied through the submission of the design and, where necessary, jury‑initiated clarification requests, and does not require in principle a prior oral hearing before evaluation.

UK

FURTHER REFORM TO PUBLIC PROCUREMENT

The UK government published a response to its consultation on further reforms to the public procurement regime: Public Procurement: Growing British industry, jobs and skills Government response to consultation. As part of its follow-up actions, the UK Government intends to require departments to confirm whether prime contractors are using UK steel, or explain why not. It is also intended to introduce a public interest test, requiring departments to assess whether a service can be delivered more effectively in-house before any outsourcing decision is made.

REGULATIONS

Procurement (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/360) amend several procurement‑related instruments to correct drafting defects and make targeted technical changes to ensure the Procurement Act 2023 regime operates as intended, including in relation to transparency obligations, payment reporting, notice publication on the central digital platform, and transitional and timing matters.