The European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) has published a study examining the growing use of algorithmic management (AM) and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies across EU workplaces. Conducted to support the Employment and Social Affairs Committee, the study finds that 42.3% of EU workers are already subject to AM tools—a figure expected to rise to 55.5% within five years—and highlights significant regulatory gaps in current EU and national frameworks. While AM can improve productivity, it poses risks to workers’ health, autonomy, and data protection, often exacerbating stress and psychosocial pressures. The study identifies deficiencies in the coverage of existing laws such as Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation), the EU Artificial Intelligence Act, and Directive (EU) 2024/2831 (Platform Work Directive), noting limited oversight and weak protection for non-platform workers. It explores three policy options: adopting an EU recommendation; amending existing legislation; or introducing a dedicated Algorithmic Management Directive. The EPRS concludes that coordinated EU action would enhance worker protection, improve legal certainty, and ensure a level playing field for businesses across the single market.

A round-up of financial services developments, including (among other things) BoE and PRA respond to government request for information on AI innovation in financial services.

The European Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee has adopted a resolution urging the European Commission to robustly enforce the EU Digital Markets Act (EU DMA), emphasising the need to deploy its full investigatory and sanctioning powers against designated gatekeepers. This follows a resolution adopted on 30 April 2026 by a show of hands, in which Parliament urged the European Commission to ensure swift and consistent enforcement of the EU DMA, while highlighting the growing strategic importance of cloud computing services and the increasing use of AI-driven search tools, such as Google’s AI overview, and stressing the need for closer scrutiny of these developments under the EU DMA framework. MEPs expressed concern over external political and economic pressures that could dilute enforcement and stress the importance of preserving EU regulatory autonomy in digital competition policy. They also pointed to emerging challenges, including the role of generative AI and cloud-based services in potentially reinforcing market dominance, and called for closer scrutiny to prevent new forms of digital 'lock-in', while ensuring the DMA continues to promote fair competition, market openness and user choice. The Committee highlighted the necessity of adequate resources and technical expertise for effective oversight, particularly in light of ongoing investigations into major technology platforms. The statement signals heightened parliamentary scrutiny of EU DMA implementation and reinforces expectations of assertive enforcement by the Commission.

The Bank of England (BoE) reports on Randy Kroszner’s address at the Futures Industry Association (FIA) International Derivative Expo, where he examined the critical role of central counterparties (CCPs) in maintaining financial stability amid emerging global risks. Drawing on his extensive experience as an academic, regulator, and policymaker, Kroszner outlined how recent global shocks — including geopolitical tensions, trade-policy disruptions, sovereign debt vulnerabilities, and cyber threats — have heightened market uncertainty and underscored the necessity for a system-wide risk management approach. He explained that while CCPs serve as vital shock absorbers, the concentration of clearing activities among a few dominant players could amplify systemic risks during market stress. Furthermore, Kroszner addressed regulatory challenges by emphasising the need for enhanced data collection, improved market surveillance, and greater international coordination to bridge existing data gaps. His speech also spotlighted ongoing reforms, notably the BoE’s macro-prudential regulatory framework and the forthcoming fundamental rules for financial market infrastructure, which together underscore a commitment to harmonising standards and reinforcing financial stability in an interconnected global landscape.

Key information Birds Directive Title Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds (codified version) (Birds Directive) Entry into force 15 February 2010 Transposition deadline N/A. This Directive replaced the first Birds Directive 79/409/EEC by codifying all the amendments made to it through the years and these amendments had their own transposition deadlines National transposition measures See Eur-Lex information on national transposition measures, as provided by Member States Repeals Birds Directive 79/409/EEC Amendments —Council Directive 2013/17/EU of 13 May 2013 adapting certain directives in the field of environment, by reason of the accession of the Republic of Croatia—Regulation (EU) 2019/1010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on the alignment of reporting obligations in the field of legislation related to the environment Subject Wild birds, conservation, protection of species and habitats Background and objectives Europe is home to around 500 bird species. However, over a third are

This week’s edition of PI & Clinical Negligence weekly highlights includes a High Court decision which considers accommodation costs and how the guidance set out in Swift v Carpenter should be applied in a case involving a short life expectancy. The Whiplash Injury (Amendment) Regulations 2025 come into force on 31 May 2025 and increase tariff amounts where a cause of action accrues on or after 31 May 2025. In addition, we have our usual round-up of other news, cases and New Law Journal articles of interest.

This week's edition of PI & Clinical Negligence weekly highlights includes a Senior Courts Costs Office decision which held that Medical Reporting Organisation fees are recoverable as disbursements (not outsourced solicitors' work) but limited reasonable mark-ups on experts’ fees to 25% in the absence of sufficient justification (JXX v Archibald). We also feature a High Court clinical negligence decision on causation in a failure to prescribe antibiotics claim. The PI and clinical negligence team have published a new flowchart outlining the procedural steps required to obtain court approval of a settlement in a child’s claim. In addition, we provide details on submitting cases to the Lexis Quantum Database along with our usual round-up of other news, cases, webinars and New Law Journal articles of interest.

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) has published a paper on assessing the EU clearing landscape following the implementation of the European Market Infrastructure Regulation 3.0 (EMIR 3.0). ISDA stated that the Active Account Requirement (AAR) has strengthened the operational resilience of EU counterparties by requiring certain firms to maintain clearing accounts at EU central counterparties (CCPs), providing fallback arrangements in the event of operational disruption or stress at third-country CCPs. The paper noted that clearing activity at EU CCPs, including Eurex, has increased since the introduction of the AAR, although ISDA said it remains too early to assess the full impact of the regime. ISDA argued that existing supervisory powers under EMIR 2.2 already address financial stability risks linked to UK CCPs and called on the European Commission to grant stable, non-time-limited equivalence for UK CCPs to preserve EU firms’ access to global liquidity pools. The paper also proposed additional measures to improve the competitiveness and attractiveness of EU CCPs, including promoting voluntary clearing by public entities, enabling cross-margining, facilitating centrally cleared repo transactions, supporting the use of tokenised collateral and strengthening the EU porting framework.

The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) has published guidance, co-developed with Equator Principles, on nature-based risk assessment (NBRA) to help financial institutions (FIs) evaluate risks arising from nature loss such as accelerating biodiversity decline, water stress, soil degradation and declines in natural capital. The guidance emphasises that integrating project-related finance data can provide high-quality, location-specific insights that strengthen risk scoping, prioritisation, analysis and decision-making. It recommends that FIs involve project-related financing teams early in the NBRA process, adopt an iterative approach, clearly define roles and responsibilities and build senior-level support. FIs are also encouraged to collate and analyse project-level impacts and dependencies and to develop specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound (SMART) risk management actions to enhance long-term resilience. In addition, the guidance advises alignment with frameworks such as the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the Science Based Targets Network (SBTN) and the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD).

This Practice Note provides a high-level overview of key UK legal and regulatory developments affecting investment funds and asset managers. It covers FCA supervisory priorities for 2026, the FCA’s final rules on enhancing fund liquidity risk management for UK UCITS schemes and NURS, the proposed reform of the UK alternative investment managers regime (AIFM) regime, including HM Treasury's draft replacement legislation and the FCA's proposed three-tier framework, FCA consultations on closed-ended investment funds, depositary reform and authorised funds holding cryptoasset exchange traded notes (cETNs), and the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) updated recommendations on valuation of collective investment schemes (CIS). For more information on UK investment funds and asset management, and links to more detailed content, see: Funds and asset management—general—overview, Collective investment schemes (CIS)—overview, UK AIFM regime—overview, and UCITS—overview. For an overview of UK sustainable finance and environment, social and governance (ESG) issues relevant to investment funds and asset management, including on disclosure requirements and proposals for transition plans, see Practice Note: Sustainable finance and ESG in

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has published the Chief Coroner’s Annual Report 2024, the first submitted by Her Honour Judge Alexia Durran following her appointment as Chief Coroner in May 2024. The report reviews the work of the coroner service across England and Wales during 2024 and highlights two priorities: addressing delays in cases lasting more than 12 months and improving the wellbeing and support available to coroners, including the creation of new lead roles. It notes a 10% fall in deaths reported to coroners compared with 2023, an increase in Prevention of Future Deaths reports and the introduction of the statutory medical examiner scheme. The report also covers disparities in resourcing and standards across coroner areas, security concerns at coroner’s courts, reforms to appointments and training, and the introduction of regional leadership coroners to improve consistency. Looking ahead, the Chief Coroner has committed to requiring jurisdictions to forecast long-duration cases and to prioritising measures to reduce stress and provide professional support for coroners.

The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) has published a research note examining five years of global credit default swap (CDS) market activity from 2021–25, reporting that activity reached a record USD 41.8 trillion in 2025, surpassing the previous peak of USD 38.7 trillion in 2022. Index CDS drove the increase, accounting for 93.3% of total activity at USD 39.0 trillion, while single-name CDS activity stood at USD 2.8 trillion. The index-to-single-name ratio fell sharply to 8.5x in 2023 amid banking sector stress before recovering to 13.8x in 2025. Single-name CDS peaked at USD 3.3 trillion in 2023 following the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and other lenders. Index and single-name CDS responded differently to market events. During the 2020 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the 2025 US tariff shock, index CDS rose more sharply than single-name activity. CDX.NA.IG and iTraxx Europe together accounted for approximately 75% of index CDS activity in 2025, at 43.4% and 32.4% respectively. Market breadth remained stable, with 710–760 unique reference entities executed each quarter. Central clearing covered 78.1% of index CDS notional and 63.1% of single-name CDS notional in 2025. In H1 of 2026, total CDS trading reached USD 27.4 trillion, up 27.8% year-on-year, with index CDS rising 28.3% to USD 25.7 trillion and single-name CDS growing 19.8% to USD 1.7 trillion.