The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) published its response to the January 2026 consultation on the draft Technology Transfer Agreements Block Exemption Order (TTBEO), confirming that it will proceed with the new regime to replace the assimilated EU TTBER, which expires on 30 April 2026.

The government has confirmed that it has no plans to change the current approach to indexation for pre-1997 defined benefit (DB) pension scheme benefits. In response to a Written Question from Dr Al Pinkerton MP, Work and Pensions Minister Torsten Bell MP stated on 22 October 2025 that altering the minimum legal requirements for indexation would raise costs and liabilities across all DB schemes. The clarification indicates that the government’s earlier review of pre-1997 indexation will not result in reform, and trustees will need to rely on discretionary increases where appropriate.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has confirmed that it will proceed with the proposals consulted on in the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) in England and Wales: Access and Fairness consultation, with some modifications following feedback from administering authorities, employers and other stakeholders. The consultation ran from 15 May 2025 to 7 August 2025.The proposals covered survivor benefits and death grants, measures to address the gender pension gap, opt-out data collection, forfeiture rules, outstanding issues under the McCloud remedy, and a package of technical regulatory amendments. The government will introduce the changes through one or more Statutory Instruments, supported by detailed guidance developed with bodies such as the LGPS Scheme Advisory Board, the Local Government Association, the Government Actuary’s Department, and the Local Government Pension Committee. Implementation will be phased, with an initial phase taking effect from the start of the 2026–27 scheme year (1 April 2026), followed by a second phase later in 2026. Where discrimination or unintended exclusions were identified, changes will apply from earlier dates through explicit backdating provisions set out in the response.

The Minister of State for Housing and Planning, Matthew Pennycook, has confirmed that the government will implement two new routes for Crown bodies to apply for planning permission for development on Crown land in England, as legislated in the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Act 2023 (LURA 2023). The first route, known as the Crown Development route, will allow applications for ‘nationally important’ developments to be submitted directly to the Planning Inspectorate instead of local planning authorities. The second route, an updated Urgent Crown Development process, will enable the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities, and Local Government to rapidly determine applications for 'urgent' and 'nationally important' developments. To implement these routes, the government has laid draft regulations before Parliament that make consequential amendments to the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (TCPA 1990), other primary legislation, and planning application fee regulations. Subject to parliamentary approval, both routes are expected to come into force in April 2025.

On 18 December 2025, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published a call for evidence, seeking views on targeted changes to planning rules in England to speed up and reduce the cost of deploying digital infrastructure, especially low-impact upgrades to fixed and mobile networks. The consultation closes at 11:59 pm on 26 February 2026.

The government has opened a statutory consultation on whether the draft statutory guidance for police on domestic abuse protection notices (DAPNs) and domestic abuse protection orders (DAPOs) is clear and comprehensive. The statutory guidance covers the police-led DAPN and DAPO application route in detail only, and does not therefore provide details on all application routes to obtaining a DAPO, such as victim and third party led applications. Separate, non-statutory guidance is to be developed for the courts, victims, and third-party applicants.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has published both the government response to the consultation on amendments to the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme (England) Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/2848) and the accompanying Equalities Impact Assessment (EIA). The consultation, which ran from November 2024 to January 2025, explored how to update the member contribution structure to meet the 13.2% target yield from April 2026 and to ensure the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme 2015 remains sustainable and fair. MHCLG confirms that a revised tiered contribution structure will be implemented from 1 April 2026, adding an additional tier, smoothing tier gaps, and basing thresholds on actual pensionable pay rather than Whole-Time Equivalent (WTE), with adjustments allowed where pay changes materially. From April 2027, thresholds will be indexed annually to the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) to future-proof the structure and align it with other public service schemes.

Law360: The government on 8 October 2024 floated plans to create new pooled pension funds spanning multiple employers, which will have the financial firepower to invest in UK economic growth.

Planning analysis: On 30 July 2024, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published a consultation on its proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), and wider national planning policy reforms.

Planning analysis: The government has published a consultation proposing to make changes to existing permitted development (PD) rights in England relating to: schools affected by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), assets of community value, Crown development on closed defence sites, and conservation measures within Environmental Delivery Plans.

Planning analysis: On 24 August 2026, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published a consultation on implementing the planning powers conferred on mayors of strategic authorities by the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026. The proposals would extend key elements of the London mayoral planning model across England, enabling mayors to intervene in planning applications of potential strategic importance (PSI), make Mayoral Development Orders (MDO) and, outside London, charge a Mayoral Community Infrastructure Levy (MCIL). The consultation also proposes changes to the Local Development Order (LDO) regime. It closes on 5 October 2026.

Planning analysis: The government has published a consultation seeking views on whether recent procedural reforms applying to judicial review challenges of nationally significant infrastructure project (NSIP) decisions should be extended to major infrastructure projects and strategically important developments consented outside the Planning Act 2008 (PA 2008) regime. The proposals include removing the paper permission stage, restricting further appeals where a claim is certified as totally without merit, formally designating qualifying challenges as significant Planning Court claims and applying expedited target timescales in the High Court and Court of Appeal.