>none of the auctions or checkbox ticking exercises would have been manageable by startups
Generally startups should not be in government supply chain unless it is explicitly permitted / requested. They are by definition too risky for public to rely on their services, so it's ok that they cannot pass the checkbox ticking exercise. In rare cases where their presence is desirable (e.g. to boost innovation or find radically new solutions), government can always step in and offer them sherpa service (as it usually happens) to go through the paperwork.
Whether the whole regulation is necessary, is another question. I think it does, but the process must be more cost-efficient. It can be. I have seen in some places how the government has put focus on bureaucratic efficiency and it worked, but that often means a strategic horizon of a few decades, which is not within the reach of most democracies today: you need a stable government and public consensus.
Generally startups should not be in government supply chain unless it is explicitly permitted / requested. They are by definition too risky for public to rely on their services, so it's ok that they cannot pass the checkbox ticking exercise. In rare cases where their presence is desirable (e.g. to boost innovation or find radically new solutions), government can always step in and offer them sherpa service (as it usually happens) to go through the paperwork.
Whether the whole regulation is necessary, is another question. I think it does, but the process must be more cost-efficient. It can be. I have seen in some places how the government has put focus on bureaucratic efficiency and it worked, but that often means a strategic horizon of a few decades, which is not within the reach of most democracies today: you need a stable government and public consensus.