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The Cabinet Office has published a Procurement Policy Note (09/15) on the requirements for contracting authorities to assist with procurement investigations – specifically the Mystery Shopper scheme. Previously, compliance by contracting authorities with this investigation process (instigated by SMEs who felt a tender exercise had not been undertaken fairly or had been unbalanced in favour of larger companies) was optional.
On 26 May 2015, section 40 of the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 came into force, making contracting authorities’ assistance with any such investigation compulsory. Investigations can be into the procurement process or contract management. Contracting authorities may be issued with a notice under section 40 requiring provision of documents and information; if they fail to respond they will be in breach of their statutory duty.
This gives more ‘teeth’ to central government’s powers to intervene in local government procurement and seems contrary to the model of decentralisation that the government is ostensibly working towards.
In a recent case the Employment Appeal Tribunal determined that, as a zero-hour worker, the Claimant was not entitled to be paid whilst he was suspended pending an investigation into an allegation of misconduct.
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For business disputes, it looks likely that remote hearings will be an option into the future.
The Government has launched a consultation today on potential changes to the statutory flexible working regime.
Given the ongoing scrutiny of maternity services following publication of the Ockenden preliminary report in December 2020, it is timely that World Patient Safety Day on 17 September 2021 has a focus on safe maternal and newborn care.
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