Government issues revised transparency principles for contract information

The Government has issued a revised set of transparency principles requiring public procurers proactively to disclose contract and related information that may previously have been withheld on grounds of commercial confidentiality.

In its latest procurement policy note (PPN), the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) called on ‘in-scope organisations’ to “engage in early discussions with suppliers, and in advance of any contract award, the types of procurement and contracts information to be which can be disclosed to the public, and then to ensure publication of that information in an accessible format”.

The CCS said the principles had been clarified following feedback.

“The financial transparency of suppliers remains a priority and is a key feature of the Government Commercial Function’s commercial intelligence programme,” it added.

In-scope organisations are all central government departments, their executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies.

An earlier PPN (13/15), dated August 2015, is now out of date and been replaced.