Most Advantageous Tender

The Procurement Act 2023 changed the language, and to some extent the emphasis, of how winning bids are selected in UK public procurement. Section 19 provides that 'a contracting authority may award a public contract to the supplier that submits the most advantageous tender in a competitive tendering procedure', and defines that term precisely: 'the "most advantageous tender" is the tender that the contracting authority considers (a) satisfies the contracting authority's requirements, and (b) best satisfies the award criteria when assessed by reference to' the published assessment methodology and, where there is more than one criterion, its relative importance.

This replaces the previous regime's 'most economically advantageous tender' (MEAT) language used under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, which is now superseded now that the 2023 Act's procurement rules are in force. The change in wording signals a broadened conception of value for money — authorities can weigh quality and wider policy objectives (such as those in the National Procurement Policy Statement) more explicitly alongside price, rather than the assessment being framed primarily around economic advantage.