# Awarding Public Contracts Skilfully and Lawfully within the Scottish Procurement Rules

> Court-Proven, Solution-Focused Answers to 7 Thorny Questions: Directly from Top-Flight Policy Makers, Lawyers and Industry Experts

- Format: In-person
- Date: Tuesday, 1 October 2024, 10:00AM to 4:00PM (registration from 9:30AM)
- Venue: InterContinental The George, 19 - 21 George St, Edinburgh, EH2 2PB
- 5 hours CPD
- Rates: Live Attendance £249.00 + VAT per person
- Status: This conference has taken place
- Book: https://whitepaper.co.uk/conferences/procscotland24

## Programme

- 09:30 Registration and coffee
- 10:00 Chair's Introduction: Awarding public contracts skilfully and lawfully within the Scottish procurement rules
  - Chaired by Duncan Osler, Morton Fraser MacRoberts
- Panel: Billy Hislop, Head of Procurement, VisitScotland; Julie Caughey, Director, Caughey Solutions
- 10:10 Prior performance: How do you deal with and curtail bidders who have scored well on tender submissions but performed poorly on other contracts, without making this known?
  - Answered by Charles Livingstone, Brodies
- 10:50 Level playing field: How do you level the playing field, specify correctly and assess tenders objectively when the incumbent has a favourable position or in-built advantage?
  - Answered by Elaine McLean, Pinsent Masons
- 11:30 Morning coffee
- 11:50 Negotiation angles: How far can you push negotiations with bidders whilst remaining compliant with the regs, including Competition with Negotiation as a route to market and post-tender negotiations?
  - Answered by Euan Murray, Shepherd & Wedderburn
- 12:30 Framework difficulties: How do you control - and overcome - difficulties with frameworks, including exceeding estimated contract values? How do you create opportunities and head off potential challenges?
  - Answered by Ruth McNaught, Burness Paull
- 13:10 Lunch
- 13:50 Incentivisation: To what extent can "gain share" contracts incentivise suppliers to deliver above and beyond, enhancing the outcome? When do they work, and when do they fall short, supported by practical examples?
  - Answered by David Hansom, Clyde & Co
- 14:30 Non-tangible criteria: How do you incorporate softer, non-tangible criteria into tenders, such as social inclusion, diversity, biodiversity, and accessibility, and evaluate them? Can you make them pass/fail?
  - Answered by Robin Fallas, Morton Fraser MacRoberts
- 15:10 Preliminary Market Engagement: When conducting preliminary market engagements, how do you ensure equal treatment, avoid undue bidder influence, and lawfully elicit improved and innovative solutions?
  - Answered by Bruno Herbots, Herbots Solicitors
- 15:50 Over-run
- 16:00 Close of conference

## How to book

Choose a rate on the [conference page](https://whitepaper.co.uk/conferences/procscotland24) and press Book Now. Checkout asks for the booking contact and company address, then each delegate's name and email, then payment: Credit/Debit Card, or Bank Transfer/Cheque to be sent an invoice. Bookings are subject to the [booking policy](https://whitepaper.co.uk/booking-policy).