4.19 The Competitive Dialogue procurement procedure, described in Box 4.3, was introduced into the UK in January 2006. There is now a presumption that the majority of major projects, including those delivered through PFIs and other Public Private Partnerships, will be procured under this procedure. Based on the experience of using Competitive Dialogue in a variety of circumstances over the past two years, the Treasury and the OGC will be publishing new guidance on the Competitive Dialogue procedure in spring 2008.
| Box 4.3: Competitive Dialogue The Competitive Dialogue procedure allows contracting authorities to undertake a pre-qualification process and then to invite short-listed candidates to participate in a dialogue process during which any aspects of the project may be discussed and solutions developed. The contracting authority can continue the dialogue until it identifies one or more solutions that are capable of satisfying its requirements. It then closes the dialogue and invites final tenders. Only limited discussion and clarification, which does not amount to "negotiation", is permitted once the dialogue stage has closed. The new Competitive Dialogue procedure can only be used in the case of "particularly complex contracts". A public contract (under Regulation 18(1) of the Public Contracts Resolutions 2006) is considered to be "particularly complex" where at the outset the contracting authorities: • are not objectively able to define the technical means capable of satisfying their needs or objectives; and/or • are not objectively able to specify the legal and/or financial make-up of the project. In addition, in order to use the Competitive Dialogue procedure the contracting authority must "consider that the use of the Open or Restricted procedure will not allow the award of the contract". The process up to the point at which short-listed candidates are invited to participate in dialogue is broadly similar to the processes undertaken in the Restricted and Negotiated procedures. However, the requirement formally to start and end the dialogue stage is a significant variation from the Negotiated procedure, as is the limited room for manoeuvre which is available to both the contracting authority and bidders once dialogue has been closed. |
4.20 The Competitive Dialogue procedure reinforces good procurement practice including, among other things, requirements as to the maturity of a project before it goes to market. As noted in Chapter 5, the early experience of the Major Projects Review Group has underlined the value of appropriate intervention at early stages of the project. As experience develops across a broader range of major procurements, the Treasury intends to issue guidance on project maturity in due course.
4.21 Undertaking a procurement process in an efficient, transparent and well-executed manner helps to reduce transaction costs, increases potential and actual bidder involvement and ensures a more competitive procurement, whatever procurement route or delivery model is used.