1. What is the relevant legislation regulating the award of public contracts?
The 2004 European legal framework on public procurement and concessions was reviewed by the representatives of the European Commission and the findings and conclusions of the review were comprised in a report called the Monti Report.1 Pursuant to the Monti Report, the European Commission enacted a document entitled “Strategy 2020 a strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth” (Europe 2020 Strategy) aiming to achieve a sustainable future: smart growth – developing an economy based on knowledge and innovation; sustainable growth – promoting a more resource efficient, greener and more competitive economy; inclusive growth – fostering a highemployment economy delivering social and territorial cohesion. These three priorities are mutually reinforcing and they offer a vision of Europe’s social market economy for the 21st century. These priorities are put in place by seven flagships (i.e. “Innovation Union”, “Youth on the move”, “A digital agenda for Europe”, “Resource efficient Europe”, “An industrial policy for the globalisation era”, “An agenda for new skills and jobs”, “European platform against poverty) referring to the actions to be taken by the Member States for the transformation of Europe in the next decade.