Refusal to lift automatic suspension on award of contract for substance misuse services

In Counted4 Community Interest Company v Sunderland City Council, the High Court has refused an application brought by Sunderland City Council (the “Council”) to lift the automatic suspension of the award of a contract to The Northumberland Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (“NTW”) (see here). The High Court concluded that the balance of convenience lay in favour of maintaining the suspension, in particular because damages would not be an adequate remedy for the claimant, who is the incumbent provider of the services. As far as we are aware, this is the first case that an application to lift an automatic suspension has been considered under the Public Contract Regulations 2015 (“PCR 2015”), rather than under the previous 2006 Regulations. The substance of the new provision is the same, although we now refer to Regulation 96 rather than Regulation 47H. Under Regulation 96(2), in deciding whether to lift the … Continue Reading ››