The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has released a comprehensive guide for public authorities to assess Subsidies or Schemes of Interest (SSoIs) and Subsidies or Schemes of Particular Interest (SSoPIs) under the Subsidy Control Act 2022. The guide outlines a four-step process to ensure compliance with the Act's principles, including identifying policy objectives, demonstrating the appropriateness of subsidies, minimising distortive impacts and conducting a balancing exercise. Public authorities are instructed to provide evidence-based assessments proportionate to the size and potential distortive impact of the proposed subsidy or scheme. The guide emphasises the importance of early assessment in the policy development process and encourages consultation of statutory guidance and Subsidy Advice Unit guidance for a thorough evaluation.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published a summary of responses to a call for evidence on the non-financial reporting (NFR) requirements UK companies need to comply with to produce their annual report. The main findings from the responses included an agreement that NFR has value, though the current reporting thresholds were too complex, that businesses considered NFR costs to be too high, but users considered the cost to be worthwhile, that too many smaller firms have been drawn into excessive NFR, and an expression of support for greater comparability in sustainability-related reporting and the UK’s pursuit of International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published a summary of views expressed by stakeholders at roundtables held in January and February 2026 on changes to unfair dismissal under the Employment Rights Act 2025. Participants acknowledged that most claims fall below the current compensation cap and that the method for calculating awards will remain unchanged. However, they raised concerns that removing the cap could affect business decisions, including hiring and investment in UK operations, particularly for highly paid roles. Stakeholders also noted that additional guidance would be helpful, especially for executive roles, to support employment tribunals, employers and employees in understanding how the changes may affect award calculations. Reforms to the Dispute Resolution System, alongside further guidance and support for employment tribunals, were also identified as important for effective implementation, given concerns about capacity and capability.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published its third annual progress report on the implementation and operation of Parts 1–3 of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA 2023), covering the period from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. Mandatory identity verification (IDV) for company directors and people with significant control commenced on 18 November 2025. As at 31 March 2026, 3.81 million personal codes had been issued and linked to 3.74 million appointments, with Companies House expecting to verify 6–7 million individuals by November 2026. More than 30 statutory instruments have been made under ECCTA 2023 since it received Royal Assent in October 2023, with further secondary legislation anticipated in the next reporting period to progress limited partnership reform and support Register of Overseas Entities (ROE) transparency. In relation to the ROE, 445 penalty notices worth £23 million were issued for failure to register and 111 penalty notices worth £555,000 were issued for failure to update the register. Companies House also removed 151,000 registered office addresses and referred 231 cases to the Insolvency Service (INSS), resulting in 19 investigations into illicit company activities.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published trade remedies notice 2026/04 concerning anti-dumping duty on welded tubes and pipes originating from Belarus and China. The duties will remain unchanged at 38.1% ad valorem for Belarus and 90.6% ad valorem for China and will take effect from 27 January 2026. The anti-dumping duty will not apply to line pipe for oil or gas pipelines, casing and tubing for oil or gas drilling, precision tubes, or tubes and pipes fitted with attachments for conducting gases or liquids for use in civil aircraft.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published their updated collection of guidance setting out compliance requirements for businesses placing products in the market under the UK Conformity Assessed (UKCA) and Conformité Européenne (CE) regimes. The guidance also outline how manufacturers can apply the UKCA marking through the Fast‑Track UKCA route, including the use of UK or EU conformity assessment procedures where permitted. Additionally, the collection covers sector‑specific product marking requirements, the continued recognition of certain EU requirements such as CE marking and the use of harmonised standards to place CE‑marked products on the market in Great Britain.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published an updated impact assessment (IA), replacing the version published on 19 March 2024. This updated version contains several revisions to the analysis, including changes to the method used to estimate the number of companies likely to benefit from increased company size definition thresholds. In addition, the DBT also published the Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC)'s opinion on the IA.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has re-laid the draft Companies Act 2006 (Recognition of Third Country Qualifications and Practical Training) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 before Parliament, after originally being laid in May 2024. The draft regulations were sent for sifting on 12 March 2025. This statutory instrument (SI) amends section 1221 and paragraph 9 of Schedule 11 to the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006), enabling auditors from countries outside the European Economic Area to provide practical training in audit that contributes to UK qualification requirements. It also clarifies the mutual recognition process for third country audit qualifications, aligning it with the Professional Qualifications Act 2022 (PQA 2022).

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT), Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation (OTSI) and Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) have jointly published two guidance documents relating to the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, SI 2019/855. The first guidance addresses technology transfer sanctions compliance under regulations 26, 42A, 46YA, 46Z30A and 46Z35, while the second covers sectoral software sanctions under Chapter 4N. Both documents provide detailed information on compliance requirements and licence application procedures for their respective areas. These guidance documents complement the existing Russia sanctions statutory guidance.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has released guidance on harmful international trade practices to ensure free and fair trade and prevent businesses from competing based on merit. The guidance highlights the types of harmful trading practices, which are called market distorting practices (MDPs), that a business can face when accessing international markets or operating domestically and also includes information on how businesses can report these MDPs that affect them.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has published its latest Assimilated Law Parliamentary Report, covering the period from June to December 2025. The report provides an update on the Retained EU Law (REUL) and Assimilated Law Dashboard, which tracks the volume and status of assimilated law (formerly known as REUL) across government departments. DBT has also updated the REUL dashboard. As of 23 December 2025, the dashboard records 6,925 assimilated law instruments across approximately 400 policy areas. Since the previous reporting period, 61 instruments have been revoked or reformed, bringing the cumulative total to 2,572 instruments amended or reformed to date. Since the publication of the last Assimilated Law Parliamentary Report, the government laid one statutory instrument (SI) using powers under the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 (REUL Act 2023) to amend assimilated law, alongside one SI made using both REUL Act 2023 powers and other legislative powers. A further 23 SIs were laid under other domestic legislation to revoke or reform assimilated law.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has reported that the government has announced a new independent appeals process for postmasters in the Horizon Shortfall Scheme. This will allow postmasters who felt that their financial settlement did not reflect 'the true extent of their losses and trauma' to apply for the new independent process. DBT has noted that the process is to be established as soon as possible and that further updates on eligibility and the application process will be published when the scheme is launched.