Regulations to bar blacklisting offenders from public tenders

Companies involved in "blacklisting" will be excluded by law from bidding for public contracts, under new regulations laid before the Scottish Parliament.

From 18 April 2016, it will be a legal requirement for public bodies to exclude businesses which are found to have breached the Blacklists Regulations 2010, or which have admitted to doing so. The new law replaces previous guidelines for public bodies, which required companies seeking public sector contracts to disclose whether they have been involved in the practice.

Blacklisting is the practice of systematically denying individuals employment on the basis of information, whether or not accurate, held in some kind of database. The regulations follow a consultation on EU procurement directives which introduce a new ground for exclusion dealing with breaches of labour, social and environmental law obligations.

Any ban will remain in force until the business concerned has taken appropriate remedial measures, or a period of three years has elapsed since the blacklisting occurred, which is the maximum timescale allowed under EU law.

Keith Brown, Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Investment and Cities commented: “We have always been clear that blacklisting in any form is unacceptable, and will not be tolerated, particularly given the serious impact it can have on the lives of those affected.

“It is important that companies who are awarded public contracts maintain high standards of business and professional conduct, and that is why we are introducing this legislation to crack down on the practice."