The Charities Act 2006 (now the Charities Act 2011) introduced a new form of incorporated charitable entity, the CIO.  There has been a long delay in making CIOs available but their imminent arrival has been heralded by a recent government anno...

Many in local government will already be familiar with the CRC Scheme. This is the UK’s mandatory emissions trading scheme aimed at improving energy efficiency and cutting carbon dioxide emissions in large public and privat...

The European Commission has announced proposals to amend the Enabling Regulation adopted in 1998. This forms part of the EC’s State Aid Modernisation Initiative. It will allow the EC to focus on larger more...

? The European Commission has announced proposals to amend the Procedural Regulation adopted in 1999. This forms part of the EC’s State Aid Modernisation Initiative and will support quicker decision making and ensure a focus...

? Recently, the Equality and Human Rights Commission EHRC published detailed technical guidance for those public sector bodies seeking to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). There is separate guidance for Scotland, England and Wales....

The European Commission (the "EC") presented two proposals on 5 December 2012, as part of its State Aid Modernisation initiative. The proposals will include amendments to two key State aid instruments, the Enabling Regulation and...

? The Solicitors Regulation Authority has undertaken consultation on proposed changes to the rules for solicitors employed by local authorities.  The SRA is proposing to amend rule 4.15(e) of the Practice Framework Rules, to ...

The court has recently considered the extent of disclosure required to satisfy the obligation of fairness in a consultation exercise in the case of R (on the application of Save our Surgery Limited) v Joint Committee of Primary Care Trusts  (&l...

Today’s employment law changes; and what else to expect this year Various changes to employment legislation take effect today, including amendments to whistleblowing laws.  Other changes will follow over coming months. In this briefing we...

Local Government Pension Scheme liabilities on academy conversionsBackground The treatment of Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) liabilities on academy conversions has been presenting significant difficulties for some time, with pension liabilit...

Code of Conduct for Operational PFI/PPPs HM Treasury recently published a brand new PFI/PPP code of conduct (the ‘Code’) which is aimed at delivering savings in operational PPP contracts. What has been introduced? ...

On 1 July 2013, following its consultation Judicial Review: proposals for reform, the Government introduced significant changes to the judicial review process.  The stated aim was to balance the need to ensure lawful public administration with ...

A report from the Auditor General for Wales has recommended that Welsh local authorities should implement scrutiny improvement action plans. The recommendation is one of nine recommendations contained in Good Scrutiny? Good Question!, a report of an...

The Local Government Pension Scheme (Amendment)(Governance) Regulations 2015 were laid before Parliament on 28 January 2015.  Issued under the Public Service Pensions Act 2013, these...

Another year, another budget. So what have we learnt from the contents of the infamous red brief case? Here are some of the highlights for the local government community.             George...

On 4 February 2015, the government launched a consultation on draft regulations implementing the cap on care costs contained in the Care Act 2014. The consultation also sought views on the need for new appeals system in relation to local authorities...

Background The Government’s latest proposal in reforming the English schooling system was laid before Parliament last week in the form of the Education and Adoption Bill 2015-16 (“the Bill”). The Bill sets out provisions to conver...

On the 5th October the Chancellor George Osborne, set out the Government's plans to devolve powers from Whitehall to local areas in a bid to stimulate economic growth. The initiative was heralded as the “biggest transfer of power to local gove...

The UK’s new Consumer Rights Act ( the “CRA” ) becomes effective on the 1st October 2015. As we have previously mentioned whilst this consolidates existing UK consumer law it also brings in some significant changes to the laws appl...

Background On 16 October 2019 the Department for Transport (“DfT”) issued its “Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline Update” for Autumn 2019 (the “Enhancements Pipeline Update”). A copy of the Enhancements Pipeline U...

On 20 June 2019, the UK Court of Appeal ruled that the UK Government’s decision to continue licensing exports of military equipment to Saudi Arabia for possible use in the conflict in Yemen was unlawful. The judgment comes amidst global concer...

On 8 October 2019, the Government announced changes to the UK’s temporary tariff regime for certain products in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Under the proposals, which were first published on 13 March 2019 , the Government intended to introd...

  On 21 January 2020, the Court of Appeal (‘CoA’) upheld the Competition Appeal Tribunal (‘CAT’) judgment, finding that Ping Europe Ltd (‘Ping’) breached competition law by prohibiting its retailers from sell...

On 3 June 2016, the Supreme Court ruled that a valid right of pledge can be established on goods that are delivered subject to retention of title (of ownership). If the buyer is declared bankrupt, the conditional ownership can become an uncondition...

A recent High Court judgment provides a reminder of the rules governing the priority of security interests in an insolvency scenario, and also illustrates some of the potential pitfalls of purchasing apartments off-plan (Williams & Anor v Broado...

Changes to the insolvency, civil and criminal procedural law The German Federal Government is currently planning various support measures for entrepreneurs, sole traders, other small, medium and large companies and credit institutions to mitigate t...

On 20th April, the UK Government announced a £500m “Future Fund”, as part of its package of measures to support businesses in response to the coronavirus.  What is the Future Fund? The Future Fund is being set up with the aim ...

The Energy & Infrastructure team is delighted to launch its third edition of the Renewable Energy is Looking Good in Latin America brochure. Latin American countries represent 4 of the top 20 most attractive renewable energy markets in the world...

  The BEE Commission’s report 2018, between 2017 and 2018, had no significant change in the levels of transformation, with black ownership reflecting a decline to 25.2% from 27% and current management control still sitting at 38% for blac...

(MENAFN - Gulf Times) Qatar welcomed the granting of confidence vote by the Iraqi Parliament to the government of Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. I... ......

MADISON, Wis. (AP) " Republican-controlled legislatures are increasingly...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) " Frustrated by scarce supplies and a chaotic...

Click here for the latest coronavirus news, which the BDN has made free for the public. You can support our critical reporting on the coronavirus by purchasing a digital subscription or donating directly to the newsroom. A group of Maine business owners on Friday sued Gov. Janet Mills over her unprecedented shutdown orders to limit the spread of the coronavirus claiming they are unconstitutional. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Bangor, is asking a federal judge to issue an injunction ordering the governor to allow businesses to reopen immediately and to lift the 14-day quarantine on people coming to Maine...

By DAVID A. LIEB JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Frustrated by scarce supplies and a chaotic marketplace amid the coronavirus outbreak, some U.S. governors are seeking to bolster their home-state production of vital medical and protective equipment to ensure a reliable long-term source for state stockpiles. The efforts come as states have been competing against each other, the federal government, hospitals, emergency responders and even other countries to get items such as N95 masks, gloves, medical gowns and hand sanitizer — often paying higher-than-usual prices because of the high demand. Before the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. got much of its medical supplies from China. But China limited...

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) “has given an ultimatum to...

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican-controlled...

Google's Pixel Buds are playing a very different game to the competition. ......

KABUL (Sputnik) - The Afghan government...

As the globe contends with the coronavirus pandemic, still looming large now more than ever is the threat posed by Communist China, which is something Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-AL) warns should not be taken lightly. ......