Identity Assurance Department for Work and Pensions
HMG is intending to establish a marketplace of suppliers to deliver identity assurance services consistent with the Cabinet Office guidelines and utilising agreed open standards. This will support the roll-out of strategic customer services and HM Government programmes – DWP’s universal credit and personal independence payments in the first instance.
UK-Sheffield: data-processing services
2012/S 42-068791
Contract notice
Services
Directive 2004/18/EC
Section I: Contracting authority
I.1)Name, addresses and contact point(s)
Department for Work and Pensions
West Street
For the attention of: Mark Hickman
S1 4EP Sheffield
UNITED KINGDOM
Telephone: +44 1142943245
E-mail: ID.ASSURANCE@DWP.GSI.GOV.UK
Further information can be obtained from: The above mentioned contact point(s)
Specifications and additional documents (including documents for competitive dialogue and a dynamic purchasing system) can be obtained from: The above mentioned contact point(s)
Tenders or requests to participate must be sent to: The above mentioned contact point(s)
I.2)Type of the contracting authority
Ministry or any other national or federal authority, including their regional or local sub-divisions
I.3)Main activity
Social protection
I.4)Contract award on behalf of other contracting authorities
The contracting authority is purchasing on behalf of other contracting authorities: yes
Section II: Object of the contract
II.1)Description
II.1.1)Title attributed to the contract by the contracting authority:
Identity assurance service.
II.1.2)Type of contract and location of works, place of delivery or of performance
Services
Service category No 27: Other services
Main site or location of works, place of delivery or of performance: United Kingdom and Northern Ireland.
NUTS code UK
Service category No 27: Other services
Main site or location of works, place of delivery or of performance: United Kingdom and Northern Ireland.
NUTS code UK
II.1.3)Information about a public contract, a framework agreement or a dynamic purchasing system (DPS)
The notice involves the establishment of a framework agreement
II.1.4)Information on framework agreement
Duration of the framework agreement
Duration in months: 18
Estimated total value of purchases for the entire duration of the framework agreement
Estimated value excluding VAT: 25 000 000 GBP
II.1.5)Short description of the contract or purchase(s)
The framework agreement will be for 18 months with the option to extend for a further 12 months. The right is reserved to award contracts under that framework for a duration of up to 4 years. Potential value of the framework is estimated to be 25 000 000 GBP for the 18 month duration. This figure is identified as that which is likely to be required to meet DWP’s requirements. However, DWP represents the first Government Department adopting a cross-HMG approach. The commercial market will evolve as the model matures.
In supporting the digital by default policy in general and the Government’s welfare reform agenda in particular, Cabinet Office has produced guidance for all major public service provider departments relating to the need for identity assurance for users accessing government services.
The intention of this Cabinet Office guidance is to leverage secure identity assurance capabilities that are already available or will be developed in the private sector, allowing users to choose the private sector partner(s) they wish to use to assert their identity and so access a government service.
It is recognised that not all suppliers will (in isolation) be able to provide services across the full range of business components (digital, telephone, face-to-face) hence the intention to pursue a modular / component-led procurement to encourage consortia / collaboration and to ensure participation from organisations of all sizes based on their ability to contribute.
The Cabinet Office Identity Assurance guidelines encourage competing private sector Identity Assurance services to be delivered to users through collaborative schemes. These schemes will deliver to customers a simple and consistent customer experience for access to digital public services and will operate under consistent commercial and contractual rule sets, and will be certified as meeting cross Government standards.
Innovation from the private sector is expected to inform the Cabinet Office federated identity assurance approach in support of the following HM Government objectives and benefits:
— Increased digital uptake (supporting channel shift),
— Improving cyber security for HMG departments and users (following the approach outlined by the CESG draft publication Requirements for secure delivery of online services (Rsdops) and related good practice guides on identity verification and credentials),
— Collaboration between the private and public sector to address common ID assurance challenges,
— A multiplicity of suppliers to support diverse needs of departments and service users,
— A component / modular design approach that will increase interoperability and reduce complexity and costs,
— Enabling a diverse set of suppliers of differing sizes through common, open standards (eg technical, procedural, certification, messaging etc).
HMG is intending to establish a marketplace of suppliers to deliver identity assurance services consistent with the Cabinet Office guidelines and utilising agreed open standards. This will support the roll-out of strategic customer services and HM Government programmes – DWP’s universal credit and personal independence payments in the first instance.
The initial DWP services will be required to provide identity assurance for approximately 21 000 000 claimants. As the HMG customer base is diverse, a wide range of suppliers will be required to ensure demographic coverage to ensure that no claimant sector is unfairly disadvantaged by limiting supplier choice.
To support the rollout of universal credit and personal independence payments, identity assurance suppliers will be selected in summer 2012 and systems will need to be fully operational from spring 2013. Further details of service delivery and implementation will be provided at supplier briefing events and within the invitation to tender pack.
In due course, all identity assurance services will be required to align with the cross-Government standards framework currently in development by the Cabinet Office. In the interim, DWP (in partnership with the Cabinet Office) will provide the standards against which services will be certified. These standards will be issued with the ITT, but indicatively DWP will wish to verify identity at levels of assurance aligned with 1, 2, and 3 of the 2003 eGif standard. The draft framework and standards published for Cabinet Office by CESG present a more “online” or “remote” verification flavour than the eGif document, and present a more granular scale than discrete levels, 0, 1, 2, 3.
HMG requires suppliers to have capabilities to work with scheme members and public service providers to develop a consistent, integrated and simple customer experience for identity assurance. These capabilities include usability, technology and protocol co-development.
HMG requires infrastructure, capabilities and customer support services in the following areas:
— Identity verification. Verification will be performed in an appropriate channel (web, telephone or face to face). The provider will verify that sufficient evidence exists to verify that a person presenting on a given channel is the owner of the claimed identity,
— Credential management. The provider will securely manage the credential lifecycle (e.g. user name, password, hard or soft tokens, grids, voice samples, memorable information, one time passwords etc), from issue to decommission, including all aspects of management of the customer, which will include for example credential loss/recovery/ reissue,
— Identity correction services. For example, managing and resolving errors identified by the customer and / or DWP,
— Identity revocation services. Revocation of the identity (or use thereof for government authentication purposes) from the supplier,
— Identity authentication. The provider will enable authentication using appropriate credentials in the relevant channel (digital, telephone, face-to-face).
DWP is building interfaces to its systems for Identity Assurance that currently use standard SAML 2 profiles. The initial set of services for DWP will therefore need to be built so that they can interface with this, and support authentication requests and responses in the telephony channel. However this interface may not necessarily apply as the services roll out across HMG. Details of the interfaces required for the initial DWP service will be issued in the ITT. The following considerations will apply to authentication:
— The identity asserted in the relevant channel will be described in terms of a standardised data description for the user (to be detailed in the ITT),
— The authentication will also carry technical information describing the level of assurance of authentication,
— The provision of associated data attributes, out-with those above, may also be requested by the DWP and provided by the service provider: e.g. verified telephone numbers, history of addresses, etc.
The initial service should also meet the following requirements:
— The assurance regime and operational capability of the identity supplier will be required to support protection of personal data holdings, a privacy model and consent process on behalf of the service user, indicatively ensuring that the service user has an understanding of the type of information which may be released to the DWP as a result of their consent to use the service,
— Geographical reach. Comprehensive geographical coverage across the UK is a requirement – but not necessarily from every supplier (i.e. regional identity suppliers will not be excluded on the grounds that they do not cover the whole of the UK),
— Demographic reach. Different suppliers will already be servicing particular socio-economic groups with similar capabilities. It is envisaged that they will be able to provide identity services to these groups more effectively than other suppliers.
Central Government departments in Great Britain will have a requirement for identification assurance of service users. DWP is anticipated to be the first of a number of central Government Departments to adopt Cabinet Office guidance for identity assurance services. The Cabinet Office will establish a range of pan-HMG standards to maximise interoperability.
The procurement vehicle will meet DWP’s needs and timescales for universal credit and personal independence payments. It will also be used by “DSD” The Department for Social Development acting for and on behalf of the Social Security Agency (Northern Ireland). Further information on this department can be viewed at: www.dsdni.gov.uk. The customer volumes associated with this notice refer to volumes for DWP only.Each public service has its own requirements determined by business context, security and target service needs. The cross Government standards framework will accommodate the diversity of public sector business. It is anticipated that the collaborative identity assurance schemes resulting from the DWP commercial engagement will facilitate other central Government Departments in meeting their identity assurance requirements. As a consequence the number of users requiring identity services for access to digital public services is expected to grow significantly.
Securely verifying the identity of people, businesses and devices is an unavoidable challenge that must be addressed in order to deliver services digitally. The Cabinet Office proposed model for federated identity assurance aims to address this challenge as each new digital public service is introduced. The goal is an ecosystem in which all parties compete to improve the user’s experience when using digital services. This will take place in conjunction with collective HMG efforts to address fraud to develop a robust public trust model.
The scope of this commercial engagement is limited to the delivery of public services delivered by central Government Departments but the benefits of the approach are envisaged to be far wider. Consequently, widespread and open engagement with local authorities and other interested parties will be encouraged throughout the process.
In supporting the digital by default policy in general and the Government’s welfare reform agenda in particular, Cabinet Office has produced guidance for all major public service provider departments relating to the need for identity assurance for users accessing government services.
The intention of this Cabinet Office guidance is to leverage secure identity assurance capabilities that are already available or will be developed in the private sector, allowing users to choose the private sector partner(s) they wish to use to assert their identity and so access a government service.
It is recognised that not all suppliers will (in isolation) be able to provide services across the full range of business components (digital, telephone, face-to-face) hence the intention to pursue a modular / component-led procurement to encourage consortia / collaboration and to ensure participation from organisations of all sizes based on their ability to contribute.
The Cabinet Office Identity Assurance guidelines encourage competing private sector Identity Assurance services to be delivered to users through collaborative schemes. These schemes will deliver to customers a simple and consistent customer experience for access to digital public services and will operate under consistent commercial and contractual rule sets, and will be certified as meeting cross Government standards.
Innovation from the private sector is expected to inform the Cabinet Office federated identity assurance approach in support of the following HM Government objectives and benefits:
— Increased digital uptake (supporting channel shift),
— Improving cyber security for HMG departments and users (following the approach outlined by the CESG draft publication Requirements for secure delivery of online services (Rsdops) and related good practice guides on identity verification and credentials),
— Collaboration between the private and public sector to address common ID assurance challenges,
— A multiplicity of suppliers to support diverse needs of departments and service users,
— A component / modular design approach that will increase interoperability and reduce complexity and costs,
— Enabling a diverse set of suppliers of differing sizes through common, open standards (eg technical, procedural, certification, messaging etc).
HMG is intending to establish a marketplace of suppliers to deliver identity assurance services consistent with the Cabinet Office guidelines and utilising agreed open standards. This will support the roll-out of strategic customer services and HM Government programmes – DWP’s universal credit and personal independence payments in the first instance.
The initial DWP services will be required to provide identity assurance for approximately 21 000 000 claimants. As the HMG customer base is diverse, a wide range of suppliers will be required to ensure demographic coverage to ensure that no claimant sector is unfairly disadvantaged by limiting supplier choice.
To support the rollout of universal credit and personal independence payments, identity assurance suppliers will be selected in summer 2012 and systems will need to be fully operational from spring 2013. Further details of service delivery and implementation will be provided at supplier briefing events and within the invitation to tender pack.
In due course, all identity assurance services will be required to align with the cross-Government standards framework currently in development by the Cabinet Office. In the interim, DWP (in partnership with the Cabinet Office) will provide the standards against which services will be certified. These standards will be issued with the ITT, but indicatively DWP will wish to verify identity at levels of assurance aligned with 1, 2, and 3 of the 2003 eGif standard. The draft framework and standards published for Cabinet Office by CESG present a more “online” or “remote” verification flavour than the eGif document, and present a more granular scale than discrete levels, 0, 1, 2, 3.
HMG requires suppliers to have capabilities to work with scheme members and public service providers to develop a consistent, integrated and simple customer experience for identity assurance. These capabilities include usability, technology and protocol co-development.
HMG requires infrastructure, capabilities and customer support services in the following areas:
— Identity verification. Verification will be performed in an appropriate channel (web, telephone or face to face). The provider will verify that sufficient evidence exists to verify that a person presenting on a given channel is the owner of the claimed identity,
— Credential management. The provider will securely manage the credential lifecycle (e.g. user name, password, hard or soft tokens, grids, voice samples, memorable information, one time passwords etc), from issue to decommission, including all aspects of management of the customer, which will include for example credential loss/recovery/ reissue,
— Identity correction services. For example, managing and resolving errors identified by the customer and / or DWP,
— Identity revocation services. Revocation of the identity (or use thereof for government authentication purposes) from the supplier,
— Identity authentication. The provider will enable authentication using appropriate credentials in the relevant channel (digital, telephone, face-to-face).
DWP is building interfaces to its systems for Identity Assurance that currently use standard SAML 2 profiles. The initial set of services for DWP will therefore need to be built so that they can interface with this, and support authentication requests and responses in the telephony channel. However this interface may not necessarily apply as the services roll out across HMG. Details of the interfaces required for the initial DWP service will be issued in the ITT. The following considerations will apply to authentication:
— The identity asserted in the relevant channel will be described in terms of a standardised data description for the user (to be detailed in the ITT),
— The authentication will also carry technical information describing the level of assurance of authentication,
— The provision of associated data attributes, out-with those above, may also be requested by the DWP and provided by the service provider: e.g. verified telephone numbers, history of addresses, etc.
The initial service should also meet the following requirements:
— The assurance regime and operational capability of the identity supplier will be required to support protection of personal data holdings, a privacy model and consent process on behalf of the service user, indicatively ensuring that the service user has an understanding of the type of information which may be released to the DWP as a result of their consent to use the service,
— Geographical reach. Comprehensive geographical coverage across the UK is a requirement – but not necessarily from every supplier (i.e. regional identity suppliers will not be excluded on the grounds that they do not cover the whole of the UK),
— Demographic reach. Different suppliers will already be servicing particular socio-economic groups with similar capabilities. It is envisaged that they will be able to provide identity services to these groups more effectively than other suppliers.
Central Government departments in Great Britain will have a requirement for identification assurance of service users. DWP is anticipated to be the first of a number of central Government Departments to adopt Cabinet Office guidance for identity assurance services. The Cabinet Office will establish a range of pan-HMG standards to maximise interoperability.
The procurement vehicle will meet DWP’s needs and timescales for universal credit and personal independence payments. It will also be used by “DSD” The Department for Social Development acting for and on behalf of the Social Security Agency (Northern Ireland). Further information on this department can be viewed at: www.dsdni.gov.uk. The customer volumes associated with this notice refer to volumes for DWP only.Each public service has its own requirements determined by business context, security and target service needs. The cross Government standards framework will accommodate the diversity of public sector business. It is anticipated that the collaborative identity assurance schemes resulting from the DWP commercial engagement will facilitate other central Government Departments in meeting their identity assurance requirements. As a consequence the number of users requiring identity services for access to digital public services is expected to grow significantly.
Securely verifying the identity of people, businesses and devices is an unavoidable challenge that must be addressed in order to deliver services digitally. The Cabinet Office proposed model for federated identity assurance aims to address this challenge as each new digital public service is introduced. The goal is an ecosystem in which all parties compete to improve the user’s experience when using digital services. This will take place in conjunction with collective HMG efforts to address fraud to develop a robust public trust model.
The scope of this commercial engagement is limited to the delivery of public services delivered by central Government Departments but the benefits of the approach are envisaged to be far wider. Consequently, widespread and open engagement with local authorities and other interested parties will be encouraged throughout the process.
II.1.6)Common procurement vocabulary (CPV)
72310000
II.1.7)Information about Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The contract is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA): yes
II.1.8)Lots
This contract is divided into lots: yes
Tenders may be submitted for one or more lots
Tenders may be submitted for one or more lots
II.1.9)Information about variants
Variants will be accepted: no
II.2)Quantity or scope of the contract
II.2.1)Total quantity or scope:
In advance of market engagement it is difficult to quantify the expected length of contracts or cost of this service. However, this manner of ID assurance provision represents a brand new, cross-HMG approach that will be of significant value across HMG.
Estimated value excluding VAT: 25 000 000 GBP
Estimated value excluding VAT: 25 000 000 GBP
II.2.2)Information about options
Options: no
II.2.3)Information about renewals
II.3)Duration of the contract or time limit for completion
Information about lots
Lot No: 1 Lot title: On line web browser
1)Short description
Identity provider service should support access by on line browser.
2)Common procurement vocabulary (CPV)
72310000
3)Quantity or scope
4)Indication about different date for duration of contract or starting/completion
5)Additional information about lots
The Contracting Authority intends to use an eTendering system in this procurement exercise and reserves the right to use a reverse auction.
Lot No: 2 Lot title: Telephony service
1)Short description
Identity provider service should support access via a telephony service.
DWPs preference would be for a service provider to deliver both lots 1 & lots 2.
DWPs preference would be for a service provider to deliver both lots 1 & lots 2.
2)Common procurement vocabulary (CPV)
72000000
3)Quantity or scope
4)Indication about different date for duration of contract or starting/completion
5)Additional information about lots
The Contracting Authority intends to use an eTendering system in this procurement exercise and reserves the right to use a reverse auction.
Lot No: 3 Lot title: Face to face verification
1)Short description
Identity provider services should support face to face identity verification.
2)Common procurement vocabulary (CPV)
72310000
3)Quantity or scope
4)Indication about different date for duration of contract or starting/completion
5)Additional information about lots
The Contracting Authority intends to use an eTendering system in this procurement exercise and reserves the right to use a reverse auction.
Section III: Legal, economic, financial and technical information
III.1)Conditions relating to the contract
III.1.1)Deposits and guarantees required:
See Tender documents.
III.1.2)Main financing conditions and payment arrangements and/or reference to the relevant provisions governing them:
See Tender documents.
III.1.3)Legal form to be taken by the group of economic operators to whom the contract is to be awarded:
The contracting authority will only contract with a single legal entity and any consortium will be required to set up such an entity, for example a special purpose vehicle (SPV), as a condition of and prior to contract award.
III.1.4)Other particular conditions
The performance of the contract is subject to particular conditions: no
III.2)Conditions for participation
III.2.1)Personal situation of economic operators, including requirements relating to enrolment on professional or trade registers
Information and formalities necessary for evaluating if the requirements are met: Suppliers instructions how to express interest in this tender:
1. Register your company on the eSourcing portal (this is only required once):
— Browse to the eSourcing Portal: https://dwp.bravosolution.co.ukand click the link to register,— Accept the terms and conditions and click “continue”,
— Enter your correct business and user details,
— Note the username you chose and click “Save” when complete,
— You will shortly receive an e-mail with your unique password (please keep this secure).
2. Express an interest in the tender:
— Login to the portal with the username/password,
— Click the “PQQs / ITTs Open To All Suppliers” link. (These are pre-qualification questionnaires or invitations to tender open to any registered supplier),
— Click on the relevant PQQ/ ITT to access the content,
— Click the “Express Interest” button at the top of the page,
— This will move the PQQ /ITT into your “My PQQs/ My ITTs” page. (This is a secure area reserved for your projects only),
— You can now access any attachments by clicking “Buyer Attachments” in the “PQQ/ ITT Details” box.
3. Responding to the tender:
— Click “My Response” under “PQQ/ ITT Details”, you can choose to “Create Response” or to “Decline to Respond” (please give a reason if declining),
— You can now use the “Messages” function to communicate with the buyer and seek any clarification,
— Note the deadline for completion, then follow the onscreen instructions to complete the PQQ/ ITT,
— There may be a mixture of online & offline actions for you to perform (there is detailed online help available). You must then submit your reply using the “Submit Response” button at the top of the page. If you require any further assistance please consult the online help, or contact the eTendering help desk on +44 8003684850.
1. Register your company on the eSourcing portal (this is only required once):
— Browse to the eSourcing Portal: https://dwp.bravosolution.co.ukand click the link to register,— Accept the terms and conditions and click “continue”,
— Enter your correct business and user details,
— Note the username you chose and click “Save” when complete,
— You will shortly receive an e-mail with your unique password (please keep this secure).
2. Express an interest in the tender:
— Login to the portal with the username/password,
— Click the “PQQs / ITTs Open To All Suppliers” link. (These are pre-qualification questionnaires or invitations to tender open to any registered supplier),
— Click on the relevant PQQ/ ITT to access the content,
— Click the “Express Interest” button at the top of the page,
— This will move the PQQ /ITT into your “My PQQs/ My ITTs” page. (This is a secure area reserved for your projects only),
— You can now access any attachments by clicking “Buyer Attachments” in the “PQQ/ ITT Details” box.
3. Responding to the tender:
— Click “My Response” under “PQQ/ ITT Details”, you can choose to “Create Response” or to “Decline to Respond” (please give a reason if declining),
— You can now use the “Messages” function to communicate with the buyer and seek any clarification,
— Note the deadline for completion, then follow the onscreen instructions to complete the PQQ/ ITT,
— There may be a mixture of online & offline actions for you to perform (there is detailed online help available). You must then submit your reply using the “Submit Response” button at the top of the page. If you require any further assistance please consult the online help, or contact the eTendering help desk on +44 8003684850.
III.2.2)Economic and financial ability
Information and formalities necessary for evaluating if the requirements are met: A pre-qualification questionnaire will be issued to suppliers who respond to this Notice to request details of their economic and financial capacity.
III.2.3)Technical capacity
Information and formalities necessary for evaluating if the requirements are met:
A pre-qualification questionnaire will be issued to suppliers who respond to this Notice to request details of their technical capacity.
A pre-qualification questionnaire will be issued to suppliers who respond to this Notice to request details of their technical capacity.
III.2.4)Information about reserved contracts
III.3)Conditions specific to services contracts
III.3.1)Information about a particular profession
Execution of the service is reserved to a particular profession: no
III.3.2)Staff responsible for the execution of the service
Section IV: Procedure
IV.1)Type of procedure
IV.1.1)Type of procedure
Accelerated restricted
Justification for the choice of accelerated procedure: The procurement of IDA will boost the economy through rapid execution of the framework services and the development of a new marketplace of private sector identity suppliers.
Justification for the choice of accelerated procedure: The procurement of IDA will boost the economy through rapid execution of the framework services and the development of a new marketplace of private sector identity suppliers.
IV.1.2)Limitations on the number of operators who will be invited to tender or to participate
Objective criteria for choosing the limited number of candidates: An assessment of the suppliers capability and capacity to deliver the services required based on the responses given in the pre-qualification questionnaire against the criteria listed below:
Organisation and contact details.
Grounds for mandatory rejection.
Grounds for discretionary rejection.
Economic & financial standing.
Technical & professional ability.
Sub criteria.
Previous contracts.
Staffing.
Technical capability.
Organisation and contact details.
Grounds for mandatory rejection.
Grounds for discretionary rejection.
Economic & financial standing.
Technical & professional ability.
Sub criteria.
Previous contracts.
Staffing.
Technical capability.
IV.1.3)Reduction of the number of operators during the negotiation or dialogue
Recourse to staged procedure to gradually reduce the number of solutions to be discussed or tenders to be negotiated no
IV.2)Award criteria
IV.2.1)Award criteria
The most economically advantageous tender in terms of the criteria stated in the specifications, in the invitation to tender or to negotiate or in the descriptive document
IV.2.2)Information about electronic auction
An electronic auction will be used: no
IV.3)Administrative information
IV.3.1)File reference number attributed by the contracting authority:
IV.3.2)Previous publication(s) concerning the same contract
no
IV.3.3)Conditions for obtaining specifications and additional documents or descriptive document
IV.3.4)Time limit for receipt of tenders or requests to participate
13.3.2012 – 12:00
IV.3.5)Date of dispatch of invitations to tender or to participate to selected candidates
IV.3.6)Language(s) in which tenders or requests to participate may be drawn up
English.
IV.3.7)Minimum time frame during which the tenderer must maintain the tender
IV.3.8)Conditions for opening tenders
Section VI: Complementary information
VI.1)Information about recurrence
This is a recurrent procurement: no
VI.2)Information about European Union funds
The contract is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds: no
VI.3)Additional information
The Contracting Authority intends to use an eTendering system in this procurement exercise and reserves the right to use a reverse auction.
VI.4)Procedures for appeal
VI.4.1)Body responsible for appeal procedures
As Section 1
Body responsible for mediation procedures
As Section 1
VI.4.2)Lodging of appeals
Precise information on deadline(s) for lodging appeals: This authority will incorporate a minimum 10 calendar day standstill period at the point information on the award of the contract is communicated to tenderers. The Public Contracts Regulations 2006 (SI 2006 No 5) (as amended) provide for aggrieved parties who have been harmed or are at risk of harm by a breach of the rules to take action in the High Court (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or the appropriate court in Scotland. Any such action must be brought promptly (generally within 3 months). Where a contract has not been entered into the court may order the setting aside of the award decision or order the authority to amend any document and may award damages. If the contract has been entered into the court may award damages and in the case of specified breaches of the rules may also order the termination or shortening of the contract and the levying of fines. Economic Operators seeking the termination of a contract (where this is permitted) may be required to bring action within 30-days, although this period is extended to 6-months in specified circumstances. The purpose of the standstill period referred to above is to allow parties to apply to the Courts to set aside the award decision before the contract is entered into.
You may also care to note the information provided via the following web links:
The DWP commercial complaints process – http://www.dwp.gov.uk/supplying-dwp/purchasing-in-dwp/dwp-commercial-complaints/.The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) supplier feedback service.
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20080107210226/ogc.gov.uk/procurement_policy_and_practice_ogc_supplier_feedback_service.asp
You may also care to note the information provided via the following web links:
The DWP commercial complaints process – http://www.dwp.gov.uk/supplying-dwp/purchasing-in-dwp/dwp-commercial-complaints/.The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) supplier feedback service.
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20080107210226/ogc.gov.uk/procurement_policy_and_practice_ogc_supplier_feedback_service.asp
VI.4.3)Service from which information about the lodging of appeals may be obtained
As Section 1
VI.5)Date of dispatch of this notice:28.2.2012