United Kingdom: Introduced amendments to Procurement Bill (249) including public procurement blacklisting

On 7 June 2023, new amendments were introduced to the Procurement Bill New establishing new powers to ban suppliers from specific sectors such as areas related to defence and national security. Suppliers who are deemed to be a risk to national security can be barred from specific public procurements by the National Security Unit for Procurement. Additionally, the government has committed to publish a timeline for the removal of surveillance equipment produced by companies subject to China’s National Intelligence Law from sensitive central government sites. Finally, the National Security Unit for Procurement will investigate a wide range of companies, including those who attempt to gain public contracts to facilitate access to sensitive information.