Presented as a ‘simplification’, the government today has increased the value of ‘direct public contracts’ – meaning it has more leeway to approve projects without going through a tender process.
Minister for state reform, Gonçalo Matias, has announced the change, suggesting it is a way of bypassing bureaucratic hurdles – adding that the new values are “reasonable”.
They increase the amounts allowed for the direct purchases of goods and/ or services from the current €20,000 to €75,000; and in the case of building work, they increase the limit from the current €30,000 to €150,000.
What this effectively means is that companies that might have liked to bid for a building contract worth €150,000, or for services up to €75,000, now won’t have that opportunity unless they are chosen by the government/ government entity that requires them. They very likely won’t even hear about them.
The development comes after the government has already done away with the need for ‘prior authorisation’ from the Accounts Court for public contracts.
In the words of SIC Notícias: “In the interests of simplification, the direct award procedure – whereby there is no public tender – will now cover many more contracts, or at least contracts for much higher sums, which until now required a tender to be launched.”
With regard to the changes to the ‘prior authorisation’ procedure, this now exempts contracts where the maximum value could reach €1 million (for building works), €130,000 for goods and services.
Gonçalo Matias describes the changes as a victory in the battle against bureaucracy, says SIC – adding that they have been approved ‘in principle’, but will now “undergo a series of hearings and consultations before being implemented”.
source: SIC Notícias
