Ireland's Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, Jack Chambers TD, and Minister of State with responsibility for Public Procurement, Digitalisation and eGovernment, Frank Feighan TD, have welcomed the European Commission's adoption on 9 September 2026 of a proposal for a new regulation to reform and simplify the EU's public procurement framework.

The Commission's initiative is designed to standardise processes across Member States, lower administrative burdens and reinforce the ability of public procurement to deliver effective investment in public services and infrastructure, while advancing wider strategic policy goals.

The file has been identified as a priority for Ireland to chair during its Presidency of the Council of the European Union and forms part of the One Europe, One Market Roadmap.

Under the Irish Presidency, the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation will champion competitiveness and supports for small businesses, and will advance three core strands—strategic, simplification and harmonisation—while ensuring the EU's ambitious overhaul remains grounded in practical commercial realities.

The Commission's proposal follows, by one month, the Government's first National Public Procurement Strategy, Procuring for Our Future. The Strategy mirrors many of the same aims, including simplifying procedures, improving efficiency, securing better value for money and expanding opportunities for SMEs, particularly start-ups, microenterprises and social enterprises.

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To create a more streamlined, user-focused system, the Strategy sets out actions such as reviewing and consolidating public procurement circulars to provide clear and accessible guidance; developing a procurement eLearning programme to build capability across the public sector; establishing a National Public Procurement Knowledge Hub to promote consistency and best practice; and broadening knowledge-sharing for public buyers while enhancing eTenders to improve the experience for buyers and suppliers.

As holder of the Council Presidency, Ireland will lead work on procurement matters at Council level, chairing negotiations among Member States on the Commission's text and helping to shape the future direction of the EU's procurement regime.

Jack Chambers said: "I welcome the publication of this significant proposal to reform the EU public procurement framework. There is a broad recognition across Europe that procurement processes can be made simpler, more efficient and more accessible for both public buyers and suppliers.

"The Commission's proposal is ambitious in terms of the scale of structural revision of the way procurement works. It is also focused in the manner that procurement will play a more strategic role in the deployment of public expenditure.

"I was struck by the way Executive Vice President Séjourné's demonstrated the scale of change – 900 pages of existing regulation in one hand and 200 pages of the new proposal in the other. It is a measure of the vision for change intended for procurement.

"As my Department is Chairing this important initiative at Council level during our Presidency of the EU Council, I will ensure that this very important initiative is given every priority to progress it with real effect. The procurement market covers some 15% of EU GDP and I am very conscious of the economic heft that this sector wields."

Frank Feighan said: "The Commission's proposal represents an important step towards a more modern, agile and user-friendly public procurement system across Europe.

"I look forward to supporting Ireland's leadership role in the forthcoming negotiations and to working with Member States to develop a framework that delivers greater simplicity, transparency and value for public buyers and suppliers.

"The proposal aligns closely with the ambitions set out in Ireland's National Public Procurement Strategy and provides an important opportunity to strengthen procurement as a strategic function across the European Union."