Mark Young (partner), Paul Maynard (special counsel), and Stacy Young and Anna Oberschelp de Meneses (associates), Covington & Burling LLP, review an EU Commission NIS2 draft Implementing Regulation published in June 2024 on technical and methodological requirements and significant incidents.

The Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003: The NISR provide for the security regulation of the UK sector'>civil nuclear sector. In particular, the NISR define the term “nuclear material” for the purposes of the AntiTerrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) and HM Treasury (HMT) have published guidance setting out how Senior Responsible Owners (SROs), Accounting Officers and departments should prepare, approve and publish a Strategy and Delivery Plan (SDP) for projects designated by ministers as Mega Projects. The guidance explains that an SDP is a short, public, strategic document intended to support realistic plans, clear accountability and transparency, and is first required once the Strategic Outline Business Case has been approved by HMT. It also sets out when SDPs must be updated, outlines the required structure and content of an SDP, the five-stage process for drafting, approval and publication, and the respective roles of project teams, SROs, Accounting Officers, HMT, the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority and ministers. The guidance clarifies that SDPs are distinct from existing business case requirements, focus on delivery, governance, cost and schedule expectations and must be published on GOV.UK as a Command Paper within four months of ministerial approval, subject to limited exclusions for national security or commercial sensitivity.

Construction analysis: The National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) and Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) were merged into a single body, the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), on 1 April 2025. On the same date, the government published the ‘Teal Book’, described as a guide for successful project delivery in government. These developments represent a fundamental shift in the government’s approach to infrastructure planning and delivery. In this analysis, Theresa Mohammed and, Partner, and Dom Turner-Harriss, Associate, at Watson Farley & Williams LLP, consider the detail and potential impact of these developments.

The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) has launched an interactive Infrastructure Pipeline tool, following the government's June 2025 announcement of £725bn in funding for infrastructure projects over the next decade. The pipeline outlines £530bn of infrastructure investments over 10 years, including £285bn of public sector funding. The tool provides real-time updates on 780 projects within the transport, energy, education, and hospital sectors that are under construction, in development, or at early planning stages. It offers both national and regional overviews of planned investments, along with detailed information about individual projects, such as anticipated expenditure, status, and projected completion dates.

The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) has published summary data on Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and Private Finance 2 (PF2) projects as at 31 March 2025. It reports that there were 654 operational projects with a combined original capital value of £49.6 billion. The Department for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care accounted for 309 projects, representing 47% of the total portfolio. The summary also outlines future unitary charge payments, noting that £10.7 billion was paid in the 2024–25 financial year and indicates that the number of contract expiries is expected to increase until 2036.

National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) has published the Whole Life Carbon Management Handbook to support UK infrastructure and built environment projects in integrating whole life carbon (WLC) management across the project lifecycle. The guidance outlines principles, standards and processes to help project teams measure, reduce and monitor WLC in alignment with UK net zero legislation. It aims to drive consistent emissions reductions and strengthen project decision-making.

The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) has published its Major Projects Annual Report 2025–26. The report assesses delivery confidence across the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026, before the portfolio was reset in April 2026. It states that most projects were assessed as on track or deliverable, with 29 projects (15%) rated Green, 109 (58%) rated Amber and 34 (18%) rated Red, with Red-rated projects receiving additional targeted support to address delivery risks. It also notes that 18 projects improved from Amber to Green and one from Red to Green since the previous report, while 42 projects left the portfolio, including 26 that had successfully achieved their objectives. The report explains that the GMPP provides oversight of the government's most complex and strategically significant projects supporting the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy and that, following the April 2026 reset, the portfolio was streamlined to 81 nationally significant projects. It also introduces a new 'mega project' classification for Sizewell C, HS2 and Dreadnought, alongside an AI-enabled Early Warning System intended to identify emerging delivery risks earlier and support timely intervention through strengthened assurance and performance monitoring.

The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) has updated its collection of materials on public-private partnerships (PPPs) and Private Finance Initiative (PFI) projects, publishing eight new guidance documents focused on contract management.

The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) has published guidance outlining how gateway assurance reviews should be planned, conducted and reported for infrastructure projects. The guidance comprises eight documents, including workbooks for five sequential gate reviews covering: business justification (Gate 1); delivery strategy (Gate 2); investment decision (Gate 3); Gate 4 and operations review and benefits realisation (Gate 5). It also includes report criteria for small projects and a review template. This process is designed to ensure that infrastructure business cases meet the standards required by international lenders and is applicable to countries at central, local, or regional government levels. Gateway reviews may be mandatory when central government funding is used, or they may be applied voluntarily in cases involving local government or international funding.

Nuclear Liabilities Fund: A Scottish registered company holding investments with a market value of £8.85bn at 31 March 2014, for the purpose of providing funding to meet certain waste management costs of and, in due course, the decommissioning liabilities of, the eight nuclear power stations of EDF Energy Nuclear Generation Group Limited.

Nuclear Liabilities Financing Assurance Board: an independent board created by DECC to provide impartial scrutiny and advice on the suitability of the Funded Decommissioning Programme (FDP), submitted by operators of new nuclear power stations. The Board will advise the Secretary of State on the financial arrangements that operators submit for approval, and on the regular review and on-going scrutiny of funding. NLFAB has robust powers to protect the funds supporting operators’ FDPs.