What is the principle of non -discrimination?

Look, the Roll of non -discrimination in public procurement is basically that no one can play dirty in tenders. That is, it doesn't matter if you are a giant company in Madrid or a family workshop lost in a town: all, in theory, they should have the same chances of taking the contract. No favoritisms for nationality, size, location, nor for whom the purchasing chief likes. The important thing is whether or not you can comply with what they ask for, point.

And yes, no one was invented yesterday. It is super supported by fat laws, such as that 2014/24/EU directive in Europe - which sounds like a Wi -Fi password, but it is serious - and the Public Contract Law of 1949 in the United States. Basically, what they say is: "Don't cheat, be transparent, and treat everyone the same." Easy to say, right? But you know how the world is going ...

This principle is not just for the photo; They put it even in the soup during the tender process. From minute one, when they are deciding what criteria they will use to choose the winner, until when they evaluate the offers and distribute the fat prize. The criteria have to be clear, nothing to play the mistake, and they can only ask for things that make sense for the contract - but they cannot ask for a master's degree in quantum physics to clean offices, do you know?

And be careful, if this principle is skipped, it is not just a pull of ears. They can cancel the whole process, knock the contract and even put a good cigar to the entity that shown it. Companies that feel scammed can set up legal anger, go to court or complain about the agencies that check these scams. So it's not so easy to get yours.

To avoid trouble, those who organize tenders have to curb it: plan well, put fair criteria, give all the info without hiding cards under the sleeve, and evaluate offers without favoritism. They also have to save all documentation as gold in cloth, because if someone accuses them of having cheated, they will have to demonstrate that everything was clean.

Companies, on the other hand, cannot go in "I don't care". You have to read everything with magnifying glass, ask what they do not understand, and present an offer that really complies with what they ask. If they feel they have made them the bed and discriminated against them, it is best to look for a good lawyer and see if it is worth mounting legally. Because yes, sometimes claiming goes on account.

Anyway, non -discrimination is not just a beautiful slogan: if they take it seriously, you can make public procurement a little less jungle and a bit more fair. And that, even if it sounds like Utopia, would be an advance.