S.L. 601.3 Art. 12Functions of the Director.

(1) Unless otherwise provided for in these regulations, it shall be the duty of the Director to carry out the following functions:

(a) to monitor procurement activities with the aim of ensuring adherence to these regulations and to ensure that the results of these monitoring activities are made available to the public through appropriate means of information;

(b) to establish and regulate the procedure to be followed during meetings of the General Contracts Committee, the Special Contracts Committee, the Departmental Contracts Committee and the Evaluation Committee, and during the issue and publication of calls for tenders, receipt of offers, opening of bids, evaluation of tenders and award of contracts in accordance with the rules herein set out;

(c) to obtain information from all the contracting authorities on the award and performance of contracts as he may deem necessary in order to enable him to ensure conformity with these regulations;

(d) to provide information and guidance on the interpretation and application of these regulations, to assist contracting authorities and economic operators, in particular SMEs, in correctly applying these regulations;

(e) to provide support to contracting authorities with regard to planning and carrying out procurement procedures;

(f) to grant access to public supply contracts or public service contracts with a value which equals or exceeds one million euro (€1,000,000) and public works contracts with a value which equals or exceeds ten million euro (€10,000,000) in terms of the applicable national rules on access to documents and data protection: Provided that the Director shall be obliged to keep these contracts at least for the duration of the same;

(g) to afford effective co-operation to other member states leading to the exchange of information which the Director has gathered in the execution of his duties as long as such information is exchanged in observance with Maltese legislation regulating such exchange of information;

(h) to make available to other Member States, upon request, any information related to the evidence and documents submitted in accordance with regulations 53(4) and (5), 54 and 55;

(i) to draw up and maintain a list of persons who have been blacklisted; and

(j) to make available to a Member State, when such is requested, any information mentioned in Parts VI and VII.

(2) Where the Director or his delegate identify, by their own initiative or upon the receipt of information, specific violations or systematic problems, they shall be empowered to report this matter to the appropriate authority.

(3) In order to ensure compliance with these regulations, the Director may issue administrative orders establishing how procurement procedures, or public contracts, are to be issued, administered, determined and implemented, as the case may be. Inter such administrative orders may include instructions to the alia Sectoral Procurement Directorate and the obligation on contracting authorities to submit annual procurement plans.