Ethical Supplier Mandate for suppliers

The Queensland Government will allow the current appointment of the Tripartite Procurement Advisory Panel to lapse on 31 March 2025 while a compliance review is underway as part of the broader Queensland Procurement Policy (QPP) review.

The Ethical Supplier Mandate outlines how the Queensland Government manages instances where suppliers fail to:

  • meet requirements of the Queensland Procurement Policy
  • comply with a policy, legislative or contractual requirement
  • fulfil commitments made
  • abide by the law.

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The Mandate ensures that we conduct business with ethical, environmentally and socially responsible suppliers while removing unethical behaviour from the supply chain.

Unethical behaviour includes:

  • a breach of a supplier's predetermined contractual obligations
  • actions that breach policy or laws.

The Mandate benefits suppliers, workers and the broader Queensland community by:

  • ensuring suppliers are treated fairly and not exposed to undercutting and unjust competition
  • making Queensland workplaces fairer and safer
  • ensuring that Queensland taxpayers' money is used to build the local economy and support jobs.

Note: The Mandate complements the best practice principles for procurement, which continue to apply to major and declared projects.

Who is subject to the Mandate

When the Mandate applies

The Mandate has been expanded to all procurement categories. Commencement dates for its application to specific procurement categories are as follows:

Entity Building Construction and Maintenance Transport Infrastructure and Services All other categories under the QPP (existing and future)
Budget sector agencies From 1 August 2019 From 1 October 2019 From 1 February 2024
Commercial entities
  • Queensland Rail
  • Seqwater
 From 31 March 2023 From 31 March 2023 From 1 February 2024
Government owned corporations From 31 March 2023 From 31 March 2023 From 1 February 2024
Statutory bodies From 1 February 2022 From 1 February 2022 From 1 February 2024
Water entities
  • Mount Isa Water Board
  • Gladstone Area Water Board
 From 31 March 2023 From 31 March 2023 From 1 February 2024

How the Mandate works

The Mandate will only impact suppliers that a decision maker – on advice from the Queensland Government Procurement (QGP) Compliance Branch – considers, knew or ought to have known that its conduct was in breach of a requirement of the Mandate.

The Mandate is not intended to penalise one-off honest mistakes or oversights which the supplier promptly corrects.

If the procuring agency suspects a supplier is non-compliant under the Mandate, they will refer the alleged non-compliance to the QGP Compliance Branch for investigation.

Where the QGP Compliance Branch finds evidence that a non-compliance occurred, these findings will be used to provide objective advice and penalty recommendation to the relevant procuring agency’s decision-maker.

The QGP Compliance Branch makes recommendations on a case-by-case basis, depending on the severity of the breach.

The Mandate's penalty framework

From 1 February 2024, application of the Mandate's penalty framework will expand to suppliers who breach contractual obligations, policies and/or laws in all existing procurement categories under the Queensland Procurement Policy (QPP) as well as any future categories. The expanded penalty framework will comprise of:

  1. a whole-of-government component that operates uniformly across all procurement categories under the QPP
    and
  2. a category-specific component that is fit for purpose.

Penalties under the Mandate are imposed through demerit points and/or sanctions (i.e. potential for a maximum 12-month ban from supplying to government) which are issued on the basis of a sliding scale:

  • minor breach – 2 demerit points
  • moderate breach – 5 demerit points
  • major breach – 10 demerit points
  • aggravated breach – 20 demerit points.

If a supplier accumulates 20 demerit points in a 12-month period, they face the potential for sanction – including loss of prequalification status and exclusion from future opportunities as a government supplier.

If a supplier is sanctioned and has an existing contract with government, any extension options under that contract won't be exercised.

Penalties are issued for non-compliances that occur on or after the date the Mandate has been applied to the relevant procurement category. Penalties are not applied retrospectively.

Demerits expire 1 year from the date they are issued.

Information on penalties under the Mandate for breaches of the Threshold is available at Ethical Supplier Threshold for suppliers.

Tender documentation and procurement contracts will contain provisions that reflect the Mandate's application.

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