“Make provision for how devolved Scottish procurement applies to cross‑border procurement,” says the official note to new regulations approved at Holyrood on 3 December 2025. The instrument, SSI 2025/392, comes into force on 20 December and matters for every northern council and supplier that buys through, or sells into, a Scottish arrangement.

In plain terms, if a UK contracting authority - for example a council in Northumberland or Cumberland - runs a procurement under a devolved Scottish procurement arrangement and the contract is awarded after a joint procedure with a Scottish body or its central purchasing body, Scotland’s rules apply in full and without tweaks.

For other cross‑border cases the approach is more targeted. Where the award is made under a framework agreement or by reference to a dynamic purchasing system - and for utilities, a dynamic market system - only specified parts of the Scottish regime apply, some with modest wording changes. Those details are set out in new schedules to the legislation.

Three core texts are amended. The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015, the Utilities Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2016 and the Concession Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2016 each gain a new regulation 3A explaining when Scottish provisions apply to a UK authority working under a Scottish arrangement, and when only listed provisions bite.

Each set also gains a new regulation 3B covering the reverse situation. If a Scottish authority runs a procurement under a reserved UK, Welsh or transferred Northern Irish arrangement as defined in the UK Procurement Act 2023, specified parts of Scotland’s devolved rules are switched off for that exercise. The intention is to avoid duplicate paperwork and conflicting obligations across borders.

The schedules handle the fine print. For public contracts, thresholds are flagged explicitly. In utilities, parts of regulation 17 on contracts for resale or lease are disapplied, and references to “buyer profiles” are removed for these cross‑border awards. The language is tidy and technical; the outcome is clear routes for buyers and bidders.

For procurement teams south of the Border, the immediate task is to map live and upcoming call‑offs. If a contract will be let via a Scottish framework or DPS, check the new schedule tables and align your templates to the provisions that now apply. Joint procedures with a Scottish central purchasing body will follow Scotland’s rulebook wholesale.

The amendments also touch the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014, inserting new section 3A and renumbering the schedule, while plugging the Scottish regime into section 115 powers and section 114 definitions in the UK Procurement Act 2023. The regulations were signed for the Scottish Ministers by Ivan McKee and approved by the Scottish Parliament before being made on 3 December.

For SMEs across Northumberland, Tyne and Wear and Cumbria selling into Scotland, the practical takeaway is to watch the route the buyer is using. If it is a Scottish arrangement, expect Scottish documentation, timescales and notice formats even when the buyer sits south of the Border. The start date is 20 December 2025, giving time to brief teams and adjust pipelines.

This won’t upend commercial plans overnight, but it should cut challenge risk and help firms price with confidence. For a region trading heavily up the A1 and M6, cleaner plumbing between the Scottish and UK systems is overdue and welcome.