The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has opened a public consultation on the operation of the Commercial Agents (Council Directive) Regulations 1993 (CARs) to ensure that they meet the needs of UK businesses following Brexit. The DBT seeks views on its White Paper proposals to deregulate the CARs to ensure that they are fit for the UK and to help reduce burdens on business. By deregulating the CARs, DBT aims to remove from its statute book regulations that do not fit easily into the UK's legal framework, removing confusion for business and the courts in interpreting them. The DBT's proposals include provision for existing contacts negotiated under the CARs to remain in force until they naturally end but will prevent no further contacts to be negotiated under them. This consultation closes at 11.59 pm on 11 July 2024.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has set out actions to strengthen consumer protection, focusing on reforms to enforcement, redress and consumer support systems. It will review the statutory duties of local Trading Standards services to reduce and prioritise their workload so resources can be directed towards the most impactful areas, and assess how consumers obtain redress, including consideration of a single access point such as a Consumer Ombudsman for unregulated sectors. It has commissioned the Law Commission to examine an opt-out collective actions regime to improve access to justice, will increase funding for the Citizens Advice consumer service to expand education and advice, including potential use of artificial intelligence, and will promote smart data schemes to help consumers compare offers and manage finances more effectively.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has announced plans to introduce legislation giving the Small Business Commissioner new enforcement powers against late payments. The proposed measures include authority to issue fines against large firms, conduct spot checks, and enforce 30-day invoice verification periods. The legislation will establish maximum payment terms of 60 days, reducing to 45 days, with mandatory interest charges for late payments. Audit committees will be legally required to scrutinise payment practices at board level. The measures aim to address late payments that cost the UK economy £11bn annually.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published the Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership (ETIP) Memorandum of Understanding signed between the UK and Nigeria in February 2024. Valid for a minimum of five years, the ETIP aims to strengthen bilateral trade and investment relations between Nigeria and the UK by prioritising several sectors and areas of economic co-operation, including legal services, financial services, education, agriculture, health and life sciences, education, and investment.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published its second annual progress report on the implementation of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA) 2023. The report outlines the enactment of over 20 statutory instruments and details new enforcement actions by Companies House, including 82,600 registered office address changes and 419 penalty warning notices. The report sets out implementation milestones through to the end of 2026, including mandatory identity verification starting in autumn 2025 and the completion of limited partnership reforms by the end of 2026. Companies House reports identifying £50m in UK property linked to organised crime through enhanced powers.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published a policy paper setting out the Low Pay Commission (LPC) remit for 2025. As part of its recommendations on National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) rates to apply from 1 April 2026, the LPC has asked to ensure the NLW does not fall below two-thirds of median earnings and to consider inflation, cost of living, macroeconomic conditions, business competitiveness and employment impacts. The government has requested that the LPC to carry out its proposed consultation on removing age bands for adults, with the findings to inform recommendations for the 18 to 20-year-old rate(s) from April 2026. The LPC has further been asked to recommend rates for under 18s, apprentices and the accommodation offset as well as to continue research on regional impacts of wage increases and publish findings on criteria for raising the NLW baseline target beyond two-thirds of median earnings. Recommendations are to be submitted by the end of October 2025.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published the Assimilated EU Law Parliamentary Report for January 2024 to June 2024. The report highlights the government’s progress on revoking and reforming assimilated law as well as future plans for revocations and reforms. This report is the second in the series of reports to be published every six months until June 2026. The report first provides an update on the assimilated law dashboard. It then provides a list of revocations and reforms of assimilated law made during the reporting period by the previous government. This includes an additional 24 statutory instruments being laid using powers under the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 (REUL(RR)A 2023) and other domestic legislation. The report also contains information on rights under section 4 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (EU(W)A 2018), also known as ‘section 4 rights’, which have been repealed by REUL(RR)A 2023, making them no longer recognised in domestic law. DBT has confirmed that there have been no restatements or codifications relating to section 4 rights in the reporting period.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published its Assimilated Law Parliamentary Report for June to December 2024. The report gives an update on the Retained EU Law (REUL) and Assimilated Law Dashboard. The dashboard provides information about the quantity of assimilated law (formerly known as REUL) and where it stands across departments.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published its Assimilated Law Parliamentary Report for December 2024-June 2025. The report gives an update on the Retained EU Law (REUL) and Assimilated Law Dashboard. The dashboard provides information about the quantity of assimilated law (formerly known as REUL) and where it stands across departments.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published the Companies (Directors' Remuneration and Audit) (Amendment) Regulations 2025, currently undergoing parliamentary sifting as of 4 March 2025. This Statutory Instrument (SI) aims to streamline the directors’ remuneration reporting framework by removing certain overlapping EU-origin directors' remuneration reporting obligations for UK listed companies. It will also clarify specific powers of the UK audit regulator concerning overseas audits involving non-UK companies and their auditors. In addition, the regulations introduce a discretionary exemption from the prohibition of certain non-audit services, allowing audit firms that provide these services to a Public Interest Entity to tender for the audit of that entity.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published two major sector plans as part of the UK's Modern Industrial Strategy. The Creative Industries Sector Plan aims to increase annual investment in the sector from £17bn to £31bn by 2035, focusing on film, TV, video games, music, performing arts and advertising. The Digital and Technologies Sector Plan targets positioning the UK among the top three places globally for technology business creation by 2035, with emphasis on artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, cyber security, semiconductors, engineering biology and advanced connectivity. Both plans outline measures across R&D investment, skills development, access to finance, infrastructure improvements and international partnerships. The plans include specific funding commitments including £75m for screen growth, £30m for video games, and £1bn to expand the UK's artificial intelligence compute capacity.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published a policy paper setting out the Low Pay Commission (LPC) remit for 2026. The remit asks the LPC to make recommendations for National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) rates to apply from 1 April 2027 and to submit its advice to the government by the end of October 2026. In making its recommendations on the NLW, the LPC is asked to ensure that the rate does not fall below two-thirds of median earnings for workers in the NLW population. The LPC is also required to take into account the cost of living, including inflation forecasts, as well as the impact on business, competitiveness, the labour market and wider macroeconomic conditions.