Under the procurement regulations, where the award of a contract is challenged, the award of the contract will be automatically suspended.
However in the recent case of Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospital NHS Foundation Trust v Newcastle Primary Care Trust [2012] the court used its powers under the procurement regulations to lift the automatic suspension.
The case demonstrates that the courts will listen to arguments that commissioners put forward claiming that if the automatic suspension is not lifted they would be forced to contract with another provider for an interim service which would not be fair to either the commissioner or the successful bidder for the contract.
This recent case should therefore encourage commissioners to challenge the automatic suspension of a contract award when faced with similar circumstances.