List of environmental demands for public contracts to be stripped out in push for jobs

By Steph Spyro, Deputy political editor and envionment editor

14:30, Wed, Aug 5, 2026 Updated: 14:32, Wed, Aug 5, 2026

Louise Haigh is effectively Andy Burnham's deputy as Secretary of State

Louise Haigh is effectively Andy Burnham's deputy as First Secretary of State (Image: Getty)

Net zero requirements for companies being awarded government contracts are to be scrapped.

First Secretary of State Louise Haigh said bidding businesses will instead have to prove that they will help young people back into work.

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Ms Haigh, who is effectively Andy Burnham’s deputy despite being a convicted fraudster, insisted that Whitehall will scrap a list of demands that companies have had to satisfy in order to win deals.

She said: “For too long, procurement has tried to tick too many boxes. If you prioritise everything, then you’re prioritising nothing.”

Ms Haigh said the rules had included “a whole gamut of conditions around net zero, around the environment”.

She continued: “There were things that I think a lot of businesses would have struggled to prove, like tackling domestic abuse and improving high streets. It became quite amorphous”.

The Cabinet Office’s new “social value” model will require firms, both inside the UK and internationally, to show they are creating jobs and opportunities in Britain.

The weighting given to “social value” will increase from 10% to 20% for contracts worth £5million or more, under the proposed model.

Guidance will be published in the autumn, and the new model will come into effect from January.

Charlotte Brumpton-Childs, national secretary for the GMB union, said: "Using public money to create good jobs, apprenticeships and skills in our communities is the right approach.

"Taxpayers expect government contracts to deliver real benefits for working people and UK jobs, not just profits for suppliers.

"These changes have the potential to support local employment, help young people into quality work and strengthen skills across the country.

"The focus must now be on ensuring these commitments are meaningful, properly monitored and lead to decent, unionised jobs that workers can build their futures on."

Mr Burnham previously said the Government would change procurement rules to prioritise “social value” when giving out contracts, including whether firms offer young people work experience.

He told a podcast last week that he wanted to increase the number of 45-day placements given to 16 to 18-year-olds, which could improve their employability in a bid to drive down the number of young people not in education, employment or training.