24 February 2025 
Ashley Shelbrooke, HEPA and Project Specialist
At 00:01 this morning the new Procurement Act 2023 came into force - heralding a new era of transparency, simplicity and greater commercial flexibility.
This is a fantastic milestone which has involved collaboration right across the whole public sector, with practitioners, businesses and suppliers, as well as procurement experts, academics, and lawyers all working together to get us to this point. We are grateful for everyone’s contributions and ongoing support from all our stakeholders as we move forward into this next phase of implementation and start to realise the benefits of the reforms.
The Act commences with three strong new operational elements, all live from today:
A new Central Digital Platform - an enhanced version of the Find a Tender service is now live and will be the single place for notices and procurement information. Many contracting authorities have already successfully onboarded and the platform is now open for suppliers to search for and view opportunities. Suppliers only need to register their details at the point of bidding. You can visit the Find a Tender service here.
A new Procurement Review Unit (PRU) and National Security Unit for Procurement. The PRU aims to raise standards in public procurement, driving accountability - and ensure that the changes introduced by the Procurement Act 2023 become adopted practice. You can find comprehensive information about the PRU service offer and how contracting authorities and suppliers should engage with it here.
The National Security Unit for Procurement will support Ministers in the application of the new national security exclusion grounds, including in the investigation of suppliers for debarment and in assessing referrals made by contracting authorities for exclusions and terminations. Today, we also published specific guidance on the national security exclusion grounds which you can find here.
The Cabinet Office will continue to support with guidance and advice as you get to grips with the changes and maximise the potential of the Act. Our official L&D package remains in place with Deep Dives continuing until July 2025. The Communities of Practice will continue to support practitioners until March 2026, sharing best practice and with community meet-ups and lively and informative discussions on the message boards. And we will continue to communicate updates via the newsletter as we support you through the coming months.
The Transforming Public Procurement landing page on GOV.UK is the repository for a range of information about the programme, including a recording from our webinar series, details of our L&D package, and guidance documents to help planning and preparation, and outlining of the benefits of the new regime for suppliers.
