Mandatory Sustainability Requirements in EU Public Procurement Law

Abstract

This book provides the first comprehensive appraisal of the paradigm shift towards mandatory sustainability requirements in EU public procurement law. Traditionally, EU public procurement law focused on ‘how to buy’, dictating procedural rules to overcome discrimination within the internal market. Mandatory green and social requirements mean that the EU will limit the discretionary power for public buyers by pushing them to acquire more sustainable goods and services to achieve sustainable development goals and fight climate change. Based on legal analysis informed by economic perspectives, the book contributes to an understanding and critical discussion of the EU legislator’s move towards regulating ‘what to buy’. The book discusses the Public Procurement Directives and various other recast or new sectoral rules in light of the European Green Deal. The paradigm shift is analysed from different viewpoints, including subsidiarity, alternative regulation, economics and public purchasing. The book includes novel sectoral studies on transport, food, clothing, and construction. Chapters on national mandatory requirements in Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and more, offer case studies and highlight lessons learnt. This is an essential book for professionals working with public procurement law in academia and practice, and to those engaged in achieving public policy objectives in light of climate change and social injustice.