In the Spring Budget 2024, on 6 March 2024, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP, announced that the government is working with the Association of British Insurers (ABI) to finalise a framework for monitoring progress on the Mansion House Compact, which aims to increase investment in unlisted equities by 2030. ABI Director General, Hannah Gurga, notes the ‘crucial role’ that the insurance and long-term savings industry has to play in supporting the Chancellor’s focus on encouraging greater investment in the UK, economic growth and putting savers at the heart of decisions. Gurga highlights the ABI’s Investment Delivery Forum is the ‘driving force behind ensuring the £100bn unleashed from Solvency UK can be invested in green and good projects.’

The Association of British Insurers (ABI)  has released new data showing that in 2023, annuity providers invested £178 billion (65% of their assets) in the UK, primarily in housing, renewable energy and infrastructure projects. The ABI highlights that this investment has supported multiple sectors and generated employment and represents a significant contribution, especially when compared to the estimated 55% of total assets invested by defined benefit (DB) pension schemes in the UK economy. The ABI report titled ‘Powering UK Growth Through Pensions’, outlines the investment strategies of providers in defined contribution (DC) pensions, bulk annuities (which cover employers’ defined benefit (DB) pensions), and individual annuities. The report also discusses the measures required to boost investment in the UK. The report's findings emphasise the significant role that both DC providers and annuity insurers play as investors in the UK economy.

Law360: The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has publicly backed the government's decade-long industrial strategy designed to promote business investment and growth in the UK.

Law360: The government must publish a ‘roadmap’ for the introduction of private sector pensions dashboards, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) said on 2 June 2025, warning that officials will fail to hit targets for public engagement without making the service widely accessible.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has reported that four out of five people (81%) are not aware of ‘ad spoofing’, a common tactic used by fraudsters to deceive individuals involved in road traffic accidents into using an unscrupulous website, while believing they are interacting with their insurer. This follows research commissioned by the ABI to assess customer awareness and understanding of insurance fraud. The results also revealed that 69% were unaware of investment fraud, 78% had not heard of data farming, 81% were unaware of account takeovers and 90% had not heard of ghost broking.

Law360: The UK trade body for insurers said on 18 April 2024 that turning the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) into a state-backed consolidator for smaller retirement plans would be a major and unjustified intervention.

Life Sciences analysis: Jamie Hatzel, associate at Bristows, discusses the revisions brought by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry’s (ABPI) 2024 Code of Practice, which will come into force on 1 January 2025, namely the new constitution and complaints procedure for the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA), the revised rules regarding the inclusion of prescribing information in advertisements, and the upgrading of certain practices from ‘optional best practice’ to ‘mandatory’.

The Association of British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) reports that branded medicine sales in the UK reached £14.6bn in 2023/24, with industry payments under the Voluntary Scheme for Pricing, Access and Growth (VPAG) projected to hit £3.5bn in 2025—£1bn above initial forecasts. The analysis shows pharmaceutical companies provided £631m in rebates through NHS England commissioning and Cancer Drug Fund agreements, while VPAS and VPAG schemes together generated £3bn in rebates during 2023/24.

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has announced on 4 April 2025 that the planned autumn review of the 2024 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access, and Growth (VPAG) will be brought forward to June 2025. The accelerated review aims to address concerns about higher-than-expected payment rates for newer medicines and will align with the government's upcoming 10-year NHS plan and Life Sciences Sector Plan. The review intends to restore predictability and sustainability to the scheme's payment structure.

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has announced that the government has set the 2026 payment rate for newer medicines under the Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing and Access (VPAG) at 14.5%, down from 22.9% in 2025. This decline reflects slower growth in NHS use of newer medicines during 2025, meaning the rate calculated under the existing VPAG formula fell below the 15% ceiling agreed in the recent UK–US trade deal. Payment rates for older branded medicines will remain between 10% and 35%, and companies will continue to pay a further 1% voluntary contribution to support investment in UK life sciences infrastructure, bringing the total 2026 rebate for newer medicines to 15.5%.

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has announced that negotiations with the UK government regarding revisions to the 2024 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access, and Growth (VPAG) have ended without agreement. The mid-scheme review, initiated in April 2025, sought to address rising payment rates under VPAG, which currently require pharmaceutical companies to return between 23.5–35.6% of their NHS sales revenue significantly higher than rates in comparable countries. Despite collaborative efforts, no consensus was reached on reforms to reduce these rates or to update the valuation methods used by NICE, which have remained unchanged for nearly 25 years. The failure to resolve these issues threatens the UK’s ambitions for life sciences growth, patient access to innovation, and international competitiveness.

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) and the government have agreed to extend the deadline for companies to give notice of leaving the 2024 voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing, access, and growth (VPAG) to 14 November 2025, offering a further two-week extension from the previous 31 October deadline. This extension reduces the minimum notice period from two months to six weeks, affording companies extra time to decide amid global uncertainty in the life sciences sector. Companies that fail to give notice by the deadline must remain in the VPAG scheme for 2026, while those opting to leave will transition to the Statutory Scheme for branded medicines.