The Network for Sustainable Development in Public Procurement (NSDPP), a coalition of social and environmental NGOs, trade unions and social economy organisations is calling on the European Commission to make the next EU Public Procurement Act a driver of social progress, sustainability, and fair competition.

In a joint letter addressed to the Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, Stéphane Séjourné, the signatories urge the EEuropean Union to move beyond lowest-price contracting and ensure that public spending supports quality jobs, decent working conditions, decarbonisation, responsible supply chains, and greater inclusion of social economy actors.

The letter sets out five key demands for the revision of EU public procurement rules, with the aim of aligning them with the ambitions of the Clean Industrial Deal and the European Pillar of Social Rights:

1. Make the Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT) the default award criterion to ensure best value for public money and move away from awarding contracts solely on the basis of the lowest price.
2. Gradually introduce mandatory social and environmental criteria in EU legislation to promote fair wages, decent work, decarbonisation, and social inclusion.
3. Strengthen access to public procurement for social economy actors through the explicit inclusion of targeted measures that support their participation.
4. Ensure coherence with existing and upcoming EU legislation and policy frameworks, including the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, the forthcoming Circular Economy Act, the European Pillar of Social Rights, Country-by-Country Reporting obligations, the Quality Jobs Roadmap, the Social Economy Action Plan, and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive.
5. Improve monitoring and enforcement by establishing robust and transparent systems to evaluate implementation and ensure accountability.

Read the full letter here.

Signatories:

CECOP - European confederation of industrial and service cooperatives
ECOS - Environmental Coalition on Standards
ENSIE - European Network of Work Integration Social Enterprises
Eurodiaconia
EASPD - European Association of Service providers for Persons with Disabilities
European Federation of Building and Woodworkers
EPSU - European Federation of Public Service Unions
Fair Trade Advocacy Office (FTAO)
IISD – International Institute for Sustainable Development
RREUSE
Social Services Europe
Swedwatch

Get in touch:

For more information about our work on Public Procurement, please reach out to Paola Plaku at plaku@fairtade-advocacy.org.