The Promotion of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises in Public Procurement: A Strategic Objective of the New Public Sector Directive?

Abstract

Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SME) are at the heart of the economies of all Member States. However, their share of public contracts is often deemed insufficient. Four main ‘innovations’ of the new EU public sector procurement Directive 2014/24/EU are directed at increasing the participation of SMEs in public procurement: the division of contracts into lots, the European Single Procurement Document, the limitations of requirements for participation, and direct payments to subcontractors. This paper provides a legal analysis of these innovations.