Cities and regions to co-legislators: hold the line on quality in EU procurement rules

Brussels, 10 September 2026

On 9 September, the European Commission presented its proposal for a new Public Procurement Regulation, consolidating three existing directives into a single, directly applicable framework with three procedures instead of five. The Commission estimates the reform will deliver €650 million in annual administrative savings, — €80 million for public buyers and €570 million for economic operators — and presents it as a response to recommendations in the Draghi and Letta reports on European competitiveness and strategic autonomy.

ICLEI Europe – Local Governments for Sustainability, which has supported public authorities on strategic procurement for over 30 years through its Procura+ Network, the EU GPP Helpdesk and the Big Buyers Initiative welcomes several elements of the proposal and sets out five priorities for the forthcoming negotiations.

Public procurement accounts for roughly 15% of EU GDP. ICLEI Europe welcomes the Commission's decision to make Best Price-Quality Ratio the standard award method, with quality criteria weighted at a minimum of 30%, rising to 50% for labour-intensive contracts, subject to a comply-or-explain mechanism.

ICLEI Europe also welcomes the proposal's steps towards a single EU-wide digital procurement marketplace applying the 'once-only' principle for businesses. It welcomes the provisions enabling environmental, circular economy and climate-related considerations; the embedding of socially responsible procurement through reserved contracts; the new innovation procedure allowing public buyers to formulate societal challenges, alongside clearer treatment of intellectual property rights in innovation procurement; and lighter conditions for excluding cooperation between local and regional authorities from the scope of the Regulation.

ICLEI Europe considers that these positive developments should be reinforced through the following five priorities, which it calls on the co-legislators to consider during the negotiations:

Matthew Bach, Regional Director Europe, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, said: "For thirty years we have watched cities try to buy well under rules that rewarded buying cheaply. Requiring quality to count for at least 30% of the award decision changes is an important step for local and regional governments. We are asking Parliament and Council to hold the line." 

ICLEI Europe stands ready to support the European Parliament and the Council with the practical experience of its Procura+ Network as negotiations on the Public Procurement Act proceed, and will continue to engage constructively with the co-legislators throughout the process. A more detailed technical response setting out these five priorities in full is available at iclei-europe.org.

ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability is a global network of more than 2,500 local and regional governments committed to sustainable urban development. Active in 125 countries, we influence sustainability policy and drive local action for low-emission, nature-based, equitable, resilient and circular development. ICLEI Europe provides members in Europe, the Middle East and West Asia with a voice on European and international stages, a platform to connect with peers, and tools to drive positive environmental, economic and social change. ICLEI Europe works closely with an extended network of local and regional governments and partners on a broad range of topics.