The federal government is tightening the rules around public procurement to avoid espionage and sabotage by foreign powers. Companies that are not reliable or cannot guarantee data security can more easily be barred from public contracts. "We should not ignore the risks to our national security," says Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne (Flemish liberal/Open VLD)
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Belgium introduces stricter public procurement rules to counter espionage
Colin Clapson
Published:
Government contracts for the installation of cameras, the delivery of scanners for customs or contracts involving critical infrastructure: all expose Belgium to the risk of espionage and sabotage by foreign powers. The Belgian state security agency has now elaborated new rules to minimise this risk says Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne.
"In recent years we already noticed several files that included certain risks. We should not be naïve. We must guard our strategic independence, given the geopolitical developments of recent years, the war in Ukraine and the economic race with China."
"Quick scan"
A so-called "quick scan" becomes mandatory: when a public contract is issued, checks must be carried out to see if it involves a risk to national security. If so, measures must be taken.
The first step is to check whether the public contract is covered by the Defence & Security Act. For example, companies that cannot guarantee data security can be excluded from supplies and work for military or sensitive use. If necessary, the contract may even be limited to companies from the European Economic Area, and third countries may be excluded.
Even if military or sensitive uses are not involved and the public contract falls under the ordinary public procurement law, additional measures are possible to allow deviation from the normal rules for public procurement. However, an additional justification must be provided giving motivation of why certain companies are rejected. The new rules are listed in a circular.
National security
"Free competition in public procurement is important, but we should not ignore certain risks when it comes to our national security and strategic interests," Van Quickenborne points out.
Defence Minister Ludivine Dedonder (Francophone socialist/PS) is "convinced that these new rules combined with significant investments in Belgian intelligence and cyber security services, can help Belgium to better safeguard its national security interests".