The Public Services Contracts Regulations 1993

Criteria for rejection of services providers

14.—(1) A contracting authority may treat a services provider as ineligible to tender for, or to be included amongs those persons from whom it will make the selection of persons to be invited to tender for or to negotiate a contract in accordance with regulations 11(8), 12(4), and 13(7) above, or decide not to select a services provider to tender for or to negotiate a contract in accordance with regulations 12(5) and 13(8) above on one of the following grounds, namely that the services provider—

(a) being an individual is bankrupt or has had a receiving order or administration order made against him or has made any composition or arrangement with or for the benefit of his creditors or has made any conveyance or assignment for the benefit of his creditors or appears unable to pay, or to have no reasonable prospect of being able to pay, a debt within the meaning of section 268 of the Insolvency Act 1986(1), or article 242 of the Insolvency (Northern Ireland) Order 1989(2), or in Scotland has granted a trust deed for creditors or become otherwise apparently insolvent, or is the subject of a petition presented under the law of any other state;

(b) being a partnership constituted under Scots law has granted a trust deed or become otherwise apparently insolvent, or is the subject of a petition presented for sequestration of its estate;

(c) being a company has passed a resolution or is the subject of an order by the court for the compnay’s winding up otherwise than for tyhe purposes of bona fide reconstruction or amalgamation, or has had a receiver, manager or administrator on behalf of a creditor appointed in respect of the company’s business or any part thereof or is the subject of proceedings for any of the above procedures or is the subject of similar procedures under the law of any other state;

(d) has been convicted of a criminal offence relating to the conduct of his business or profession;

(e) has committed an act of grave misconduct in the course of his business or profession;

(f) has not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions under the law of any part of the United Kingdom or of the member State in which the services provider is established;

(g) has not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of taxes under the law of any part of the United Kingdom;

(h) is guilty of serious misrepresentation in providing any information required of him under this regulation and regulations 15, 16 and 17;

(i) is not licensed in the member State in which he is established or is not a member of an organisation in that member State when the law of that member State prohibits the provision of the services to be provided under the contract by a person who is not so licensed or qho is not such a member; or

(j) subject to paragraphs (5) and (6) below, is not registered on the professional or trade register of the member State in which he is established under conditions laid down by that State.

(2) Subject to regulation 18, the contracting authority may require a services provider to provide such information as it considers it needs to make the evaluation in accordance with paragraph (1) above except that it shall accept as conclusive evidence that a services provider does not fall within the grounds specified in paragraph (1)(a), (b), (c), (d), (f) or (g) above if that services provider provides to the contracting authority—

(a) in relation to the grounds specified in paragraph (1)(a), (b), (c), (d) above,

(i) an extract from the judicial record, or

(ii) in a member State which does not maintain such a judicial record, a document issued by the relevant judicial or administrative authority;

(b) in relation to the grounds specified in paragraph (1)(f) or (g) above, a certificate issued by the relevant competent authority; and

(c) in a member State where the documentary evidence specified in paragraphs (2)(a) and (b) above is not issued in relation to one of the grounds specified in paragraph (1)(a), (b), (c), (d), (f) or (g) above, a declaration on oath made by the services provider before the relevant judicial, administrative or competent authority or a relevant notary public or commissioner for oaths.

(3) In this regulation, “relevant” in relation to a judicial, administrative or competent authority, notary public or commissioner for oaths means an authority designated by, or a notary public or commissioner for oaths in, the member State in which the services provider is established.

(4) The following are the appropriate professional or trade registers for the purposes of paragraph(1)(j) above—

• in Belgiumm the regustre du commerce/Handelsregister or the ordres professionels – Beroepsorden;

• in Denmark, the Erhvervs– and Selskabstyrelsen;

• in France, the registre du commerce or the répertoire des métiers;

• in Germany, the Handelsregister, the Handwerksrolle or the Vereinsregister;

• in Italy, the Registro della Camera di commercio, industria, agricultura e artigianato, the Registro delle commissioni provinciali per l'artiginiato or the Consiglio nazionale degli ordini professionali;

• in Luxembourg, the registre aux firmes and the rôle de la Chambre des métiers;

• in the Netherlands, the Handelsregister;

• in Portugal, the Registo nacional das Pessoas Colectivas; and

• in Spain, the Registro Central de Empresas Consultoras y de Servicios del Ministerio de Economía y Hacienda.

(5) A services provider established in the United Kingdom or Ireland shall be treated as registered on the professional or trade register for the purposes of paragraph (1)(j) above if the services provider—

(a) is established in Ireland and is certified as registered with the Registrar of Friendly Societies, or

(b) is established in either State and is either—

(i) certified as incorporated by the Registrar of Companies, or

(ii) is certified as having declared on oath that he is carrying on business in the trade in question in the State in which he is established at a specific place of business and under a specific trading name.

(6) A services provider established in Greece shall be treated as registered on the professional or trade register for the purposes of paragraph (1)(j) above—

(a) when the services to be provided under the contract are specified in paragraph 8 of Schedule 1 and when Greek legislation requires persons who provide those services to be registered on the professional register “Μητρωο Μελετητων” and “Μητρωο Γραφειων Μελετων”, if he is registered on that register; and

(b) in any other case, if the services provider is certified as having declared on oath before a notary public that he exercises the profession which will be exercised in providing the services under the contract.

(1)

1986 c. 45.

(2)

S. I. 1989/2405 (N.I.19).