WSJ: Legislative changes and EURO 2012

The Ministry of Economy has developed a draft law on public-private partnership. The draft is going to enter into force in the autumn this year.
The draft assumes simplification of the procedure for selection of the contractor by application of only a small extent of the provisions of the act on public procurement. The broader definition of the investment proposed by the Ministry of Economy does not limit it solely to building investments and - by making reference to accounting regulations - allows for coverage by public-private partnership of undertakings concerning, e.g. machinery, devices or means of transport.
The draft act has defined what public interest is (this element was missing from the previous draft of the act) and introduced simplifications in the decision-making procedure of the public partner concerning selection of a partnership. It has also proposed the principle of sharing the investment risk. Due to the above, the public entity will have the facility - without risking a negative assessment of its activities – to secure the interest of the private partner in the public-private partnership agreement.
Moreover the draft extended the topical scope of the undertakings that might be implemented in the frames of a partnership so as to cover investments necessary during preparations for EURO 2012. This mainly concerns the facility to remunerate the private partner through payment of a sum of money and not – as it used to be – only in the form of the possibility to use the constructed facility.
New legal provisions will apply to the construction of stadiums, where a private partner will not have to administer the facility during its use.

Read more in Wall Street Journal Polska. Source: „Legislative changes in the scope of preparations for EURO 2012”, Stanisław Rachelski, „Wall Street Journal Polska”, 18th June 2007
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Stanisław Rachelski, a legal advisor, expressed his opinions about legislative changes in the scope of preparations for EURO 2012 in an editorial written for „Dziennik” daily.
Like other experts Rachelski stressed that acceleration of the construction of infrastructure necessary for hosting of the tournament will be only possible after introduction of changes in legislation that will help accelerate all actions taking place where public administration and private investors come into contact.
Rachelski explained that despite two years of existence of the act regulating issues of public-private partnership, not a single agreement of that kind had been concluded so far. He remained that the current draft of the act developed by the Ministry of Economy is to enter into force this autumn.