It’s time to consider a post-Brexit plan for procurement, according to the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA)
Contractors have called for the Government to take a fresh look at how infrastructure is procured following the decision for the UK to leave the EU. For the last year the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) has been carrying out research to look at the way that work in the UK is procured, and how this can build up unnecessary cost and waste for industry. It is due to publish the outcome of this research next month as part of activities to celebrate the Association’s 20th anniversary.
However, as the Government makes plans for its Autumn Statement next month, CECA is calling for immediate action to look at the impact that Brexit might have on procurement. Commenting, CECA Head of External Affairs, Marie-Claude Hemming said: “Civil engineering contractors are primed to deliver a substantial project workload over the coming years. “Yet their ability to deliver these projects in the most efficient way is increasingly being stymied by burdensome procurement processes on projects large and small. “Our research suggests that this burden is caused, in part, by the rules that are enforced as a result of EU procurement regulations.
“While some of the EU processes are sensible, and ensure a competitive market for customers, the decision to leave the EU potentially opens the opportunity to look again at the bits that are not working as well. “Clearly the UK’s departure from the EU will take time to achieve, and industry will still be bound by UK and global regulations. However, there is no reason why we could not start to look now at what the future of procurement might look like outside the EU. “We hope that the Government will take this opportunity to work with industry to review the current approaches to procurement, to see where there may be options to improve.”
For further information on the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) visit www.ceca.co.uk
