The Public Services Contracts Regulations 1993

The open procedure

11.—(1) A contracting authority using the open procedure shall comply with the following paragraphs of this regulation.

(2) The contracting authority shall publicise its intention to seek offers in relation to the public services contract by sending to the Official Journal as soon as possible after forming the intention a notice, in a form substantially corresponding to that set out in Part B of Schedule 2, inviting tenders and containing the information therein specified.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4) below, the date which the contracting authority shall fix as the last date for the receipt by it of tenders made in response to the contract notice shall be specified in the contract notice and shll be not les than 52 days from the date of despatch of the notice.

(4) Where the contracting authority has published a notice in accordance with regulation 9 above in relation to the category of services to be provided under the public services contract it may substitute for the period of not less than 52 days specified in paragraph (3) above a period of not less than 36 days.

(5) The contracting authority shall send the contract documents within 6 days of the receipt of a request from any services provider provided that the documents are requested in good time and any fee specified in the contract notice has accompanied the request.

(6) The contracting authority shall supply such further information relating to the contract documents as may reasonably be requested by a service provider provided that the request is received in sufficient time to enable the contracting authority to supply the information no later than 6 days before the date specified in the contract notice as the final date for the receipt of tenders.

(7) If the contract documents are too bulky to be supplied within the periods referred to in paragraphs (5) or (6) above or it is necessary that services providers be given the opportunity to inspect the site in relation to which the services are to be provided or documents relating to the contract documents, then the minimum periods referred to in paragraphs (3) and (4) above shall be extended to allow for such supply or inspection.

(8) The contracting authority may exclude a tender from the evaluation of offers made in accordance with regulation 21 only if the services provider may be treated as ineligible to tender on a ground specified in regulation 14 or if the services provider fails to satisfy the minimum standards of economic and financial standing, ability and technical capacity required of services providers by the contracting authority; for this purpose the contracting authority shall make its evaluation in accordance with regulations 14, 15, 16 and 17.