Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that companies under investigation by a public inquiry are subject to enhanced scrutiny or restrictions in future public procurement processes.

The Procurement Act 2023 enables and, where appropriate, requires the exclusion of suppliers where they pose particular risks to public procurement. The exclusions regime provides a framework within which contracting authorities must consider a supplier’s recent past behaviour and circumstances (or their presence on the debarment list) to determine whether it should be allowed to compete for or be awarded a public contract. Contracting authorities can take account of any criticism of suppliers in public inquiry findings when considering whether an exclusion ground applies as part of this process.