The procurement of goods and services by EU governments and other national entities offering public services is regulated by rules which are laid down in a series of EU Directives and interpretative guidelines. The procurement of similar goods and services by the Commission and other Community institutions is subject to a different set of rules. This book examines those different rules. The procurement of goods and services by Community institutions and agencies is subject to the general principles of EU law including transparency, non-discrimination, proportionality, and equal treatment. There are, in addition, two basic Regulations which cover the Community's financial order: the Financial Regulation and the Implementing Regulation, both of which have specific provisions on public contracts. The procurement rules set down for Community institutions are often more detailed than those set out in the public procurement Directives. This is because the Directives set out objectives to be