# Procurement Act 2023, Section 12: Covered procurement: objectives

Extent: E+W+S+N.I.

(1) In carrying out a covered procurement, a contracting authority must have regard to the importance of—
(a) delivering value for money;
(b) maximising public benefit;
(c) sharing information for the purpose of allowing suppliers and others to understand the authority’s procurement policies and decisions;
(d) acting, and being seen to act, with integrity.
(2) In carrying out a covered procurement, a contracting authority must treat suppliers the same unless a difference between the suppliers justifies different treatment.
(3) If a contracting authority considers that different treatment is justified in a particular case, the authority must take all reasonable steps to ensure it does not put a supplier at an unfair advantage or disadvantage.
(4) In carrying out a covered procurement, a contracting authority must—
(a) have regard to the fact that small and medium-sized enterprises may face particular barriers to participation, and
(b) consider whether such barriers can be removed or reduced.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/section/12 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/procurement-act-2023/section-12
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.