Greater consideration of social aspects is permissible under certain conditions, but should not be enforced solely through public procurement law. Rather, social aspects should be placed within their respective legal contexts. If, for example, social standards are to be raised, this should be done through general social legislation, not via the detour of public procurement. This would impose significant additional burdens on public procurement, which would seriously undermine its primary objectives: meeting needs as efficiently as possible while making prudent use of taxpayer funds and ensuring fair and undistorted competition among bidders.

Risks and Side Effects

If arbitrary political interests are enforced solely through public procurement law, every additional requirement further bureaucratizes and complicates the procurement process, leading to greater legal uncertainty and a higher likelihood of disputes, potentially resulting in legal action. Another possible consequence is that bids become more expensive. This comes at the expense of taxpayers. Furthermore, experience has shown that companies in some federal states no longer bid on public contracts because they reject the imposition of certain requirements as an intrusion into their corporate culture. In addition, it is not always possible to draw a clear distinction between the execution of public contracts on the one hand and private contracts on the other. In many cases, verifying and monitoring such requirements is also problematic. It must be noted that, as a general rule, only requirements that are verifiable and can actually be demonstrated without disproportionate additional effort may be imposed. This is often particularly problematic in the case of long supply chains. Ultimately, mandating certain strategic aspects may lead companies—especially small and medium-sized enterprises—to refrain from participating in public tenders altogether. This would run counter to the European and national goal of increasing the participation of SMEs and startups.

Exercise restraint!

The requirements for public procurement have risen steadily in recent years. Ever-increasing requirements place an excessive burden on both contracting authorities and contractors and are diametrically opposed to the goal of accelerating and simplifying procurement procedures. To avoid creating additional hurdles, social considerations should only be required within the framework of generally applicable law. After all, every company must comply with applicable law.