Quick Start Guide to Supplying the Public Sector

Step 1

What is it all about?

According to EU legislation, all contracts from the public sector which are valued above a certain threshold must be published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU, formally the OJEC).

The legislation covers organisations and projects which receive public money. Local authorities, NHS trusts, Central Government Departments, Port Authorities are all covered by the legislation and must advertise in OJEU if their contract is covered. Some privately funded / managed contracts will also be covered - if a project is in receipt of more than 50% public funds, it would also be covered by the EU legislation (e.g. the Lowry Centre in Manchester and the Millennium Dome).

The term 'Journal' is misleading, as production of the hard copy version ceased in 1997. It can now be accessed on CD ROM or via intermediaries such as Tenders Direct.

Around 2500 new notices are advertised every week - invitations to tender, pre information notices, qualification systems and contract award notices from over 80 countries world - wide. Around 10% - 15% of these are from the UK and Northern Ireland.