In 2009 the European Commission relaxed the rules on the circumstances when the accelerated restricted procedure could be used to extend it to the procurement of "all major public projects". When use of the accelerated restricted procedure is allowed, contracting authorities are able reduce the overall timeframe of the procedure to 30 days (from a maximum of 87 days) where the contract notice is sent by electronic means. The motivation for this relaxation was that, given the exceptional nature of the prevailing economic climate, "emergency measures" were required to enable faster procurement to benefit economies.
However, the Commission has now withdrawn that rule relaxation so that the previous rules have resumed for contract notices submitted to the OJEU from 1 January 2012. The accelerated restricted procedure is once again only available in situations where urgency renders the normal restricted procedure time limits impracticable.
For further information on whether you may be able to take advantage of the accelerated procedure or on your procurement questions generally, please contact Tim Richards on timrichards@hewitsons.com or on 01908 247010.
The Government has published a consultation paper proposing the reform of the Right to Contest which enables the public to request that publicly owned land is sold where it is unused or underused.
Fishbourne Developments Ltd v Stephens [2020] EWCA Civ 1704
In this case the appellants were a development company who were granted an option to purchase a farm. The owner of the farm died in 2014 and her interest passed to her daughter the respondent.
The Court of Appeal has recently confirmed that cost capping orders for Aarhus Convention claims, which includes planning and other environmental judicial reviews, are inclusive of VAT.
The available defences to local authority prosecutions for the non-compliance of planning enforcement notices are limited. The recent case of Zafar v Stoke-On-Trent City Council [2020] highlights such limitations and the importance of exercising your appeal rights.
