The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union applies to all procurement activity regardless of value, including contracts below the thresholds at which advertising in the Official Journal of the European Union is required and including contracts which are exempt from application of the EU Procurement Directives.
Fundamental principles flowing from the Treaty include:
- transparency - contract procedures must be transparent and contract opportunities should generally be publicised;
- equal treatment and non-discrimination - potential suppliers must be treated equally;
- proportionality - procurement procedures and decisions must be proportionate;
- mutual recognition - giving equal validity to qualifications and standards from other Member States, where appropriate.