Preferências locais na formação de contratos públicos

: fundamentos e limites à luz do direito da União Europeia

Abstract

The adoption of local preferences in public procurement is a way for States and contracting authorities to use their public buying power to pursue different public interest objectives. Some of these are strictly or eminently local (e.g., promoting domestic employment and economy). Others, defined at European level, have a transnational nature (e.g., combating climate change). Apparently, the principles of the internal market would prohibit a preferential treatment to begiven to local economic operators and goods, by means of legislative and administrative measures. However, European Union law does not set these principles as an absolute value. These may be limited in balance with other public interests. Based on the analysis of primary and secondary European law and the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, this study aims at identifying the conditions for the adoption of local preferences in the field of public procurement. Building on that assessment, this endeavour will also test the conformity with European Unionlaw of the Portuguese provisions that contemplate mechanisms framing the adoption of local preferences in public procurement. Particularly, the potential breach of European Union lawby the Portuguese Public Procurement Code and Law 34/2019, of May 22.

Date of Award	10 Mar 2022
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Maria Filipa Pires Urbano da Costa Calvão (Supervisor)