The committee adopted the report by Stefano ZAPPALA (EPP-ED, I) broadly
approving the proposal under the codecision procedure (1st reading),
subject to a number of amendments.
On the controversial issue of thresholds (i.e. the amount above which a
public contract will be subject to Community rules), the committee called
for a 32%-53% increase in the various thresholds compared to the amounts
proposed by the Commission, arguing that with the existing thresholds there
had been no growth in cross-border trade in public procurement contracts,
while the administrative costs incurred by local authorities putting work
out to tender were disproportionately high. Several amendments called for
environmental and social criteria to be better reflected in public
procurement procedures - for example to boost employment for disadvantaged
people or to promote equality in the workplace - provided these criteria
were compatible with Community law and complied with the principles of
equal treatment and non-discrimination. Other amendments sought to tidy up
the Commission's proposal on issues such as the personal, economic or
financial standing or the professional capability of tenderers. The
committee said that anyone with recent convictions for crimes such as
racketeering, money-laundering or fraud should be excluded from tendering,
as should those who were bankrupt. Finally, the committee adopted a large
number of technical amendments aimed at clarifying and strengthening the
proposal on issues such as the definition of public works contracts, the
central purchasing groups, the framework agreements, the need for
confidentiality etc.