Green public procurement : option or obligation?

Abstract

This dissertation assesses the status of Green Public Procurement (“GPP”) under European Union (“EU”) law, and whether there is argument to be made, on that basis, for an ameliorated position of the same. Briefly considering the need for and benefits of GPP and its implementation in practice, the dissertation also traces the development of EU GPP policy and approach taken by the European Commission and the Court of Justice of the European Union leading to the current EU public procurement (“PP”) framework, which is examined to understand how procurement law allows GPP to be implemented today. Concluding that, save for some sector-specific exceptions in sectoral legislation, the PP framework simply permits the integration of environmental considerations in award procedures, and even then within arguably stringent requirements within a legally complex framework, the dissertation moves on to assess whether this position is reflective of EU primary law, with an examination of the EU Treaties’ requirements on the integration of environmental considerations into EU policy and assessment of their implications. The dissertation concludes that, despite lack of official interpretative clarity, there is strong argument to be made that the current framework falls short of the requirements of the Treaties, while also considering the argument that Member States have a direct obligation to implement GPP where the EU fails to secure its implementation. After answering its titular question, suggestions on steps which might be taken to bring the current framework closer to the spirit of the Treaties are given, calling for further discussion on the same as a much-needed effort towards bringing PP across the EU ever closer to achieving the sustainable development required by the Treaties and so direly needed in our societies.