Trading Standards Wales has reported that a shop in Old Cwmbran, 'Pink Lady Vape', has been served with a court order which requires the shop to close for three months. The court order follows action taken by the Trading Standards team after evidence was obtained confirming that the shop was supplying vapes that did not comply with trading standards and selling vapes to children. The court order was granted by Newport magistrates' court on 1 February 2024 to prevent further criminal and anti-social behaviour.

A round-up of the latest trading standards enforcement action, including the sentencing of a roofing fraud gang and a Restricted Premises Order prohibiting sales of vapes and tobacco products from a Crawley shop.

Trading Standards' investigations A lot of consumer protection legislation is enforced by the Trading Standards department of local authorities. Each local authority maintains an investigations and enforcement policy in accordance with The Regulators’ Code. The enforcement policies of trading standards teams are available on each local authority website which explain the approach to enforcement and the principles underpinning enforcement action taken by that local authority. When an investigation or prosecution commences, it is good practice for defence teams to consult the enforcement policy applicable to the investigating local authority to monitor and ensure that the policy is being followed in practice. For further information on the Regulator’s Code, see Practice Note: The Regulators' Code. Under section 222 of the Local Government Act 1972 (LGA 1972), where a local authority considers that it is expedient for the protection or promotion of the interests of the inhabitants of its area, it may commence a criminal prosecution against the individuals or organisations responsible. The local authority must have proper grounds for considering that action is needed for the protection or promotion

An ordinary commercial company with a Charity as sole shareholder parent company. This facilitates an arrangement whereby the commercial profits of the trading company may be donated to the Charity.

Before an insolvency practitioner (IP) takes office as administrator, they will usually have been involved in business reviews and/or contingency planning, or advising the company and its directors of their options in the face of financial difficulties. For further information on the pre-administration process, see Practice Note: Restructuring—initial steps. Where administration is identified as a viable option, the IP will assess the purpose of and strategy for the administration. The statutory objectives of an administration as set out in paragraph 3(1) to Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986) are (in order of priority): • a rescue of the company as a going concern • a better outcome for creditors as a whole than would be likely if the company were wound up, or • a realisation of the company’s assets to make a distribution to one or more secured or preferential creditors In some cases, the objective of the administration may be achieved by way of a pre-pack sale, and in others it may be better

The decision to trade on is not a decision which an insolvency practitioner (IP) can make in isolation. It is important to get commitment to trading on from the other stakeholders who need to be involved. These other stakeholders include: • customers—required to commit to continue to buy from the company • suppliers—required to commit to continue to supply the company • employees—required to commit to carry on their duties with the company, and • potential purchasers—required because without a purchaser the continued trading will not lead to enhanced realisations The checklist below covers most of the key areas that an IP must focus on when trading a business. Good levels of communication and control are essential from day one of a trading job. There are four key words to keep in mind at all times from the moment an IP takes over: • control—establish the whereabouts of all assets/premises • secure—change locks, alarm codes and passwords • insure—notify insurance brokers who insure assets for IPs • inform—call together staff to notify them of your appointment. Regular

A trading certificate is a certificate issued by the registrar of companies to a public company without which the company may not do business or exercise borrowing powers or otherwise incur liability for itself and its officers to a fine.

A company set up to exercise a local authority's power under the Local Government Act 2003, s 95 to trade in function-related activities.

Following incorporation, a company must comply with detailed regulations covering the display and disclosure of its registered name and other registration details at its business premises and in company communications. The regulations govern the form of such disclosures, their content and the manner in which they are to be made (see CA 2006, s 82 and The Company, Limited Liability Partnership and Business (Names and Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2015, SI 2015/17).

The Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) and The Company, Limited Liability Partnership and Business (Names and Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2015, SI 2015/17 (the Names and Trading Disclosures Regulations 2015) require UK companies to make certain trading disclosures, including in relation to the company's name, share capital, directors and registered office. Corporate transparency reform—company names The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA 2023) received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023, with its provisions coming into force over an extended period to allow companies and Companies House time to prepare for implementation. Many of the provisions in the legislation will require detailed secondary legislation and guidance, and the construction of new technical processes and tools to implement the reforms. For links to the latest legislative and regulatory developments see our legislation and consultation tracker in Practice Note: The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023—tracker. The government is expanding the controls over company and business names with a view to improving the integrity of the register and increasing trust in the UK business environment. ECCTA 2023, ss 8–27 make sweeping

A round-up of the latest trading standards prosecutions, including a solar panel installer prosecuted for defrauding homeowners.

A round-up of the latest trading standards prosecutions, including a builder fined after work failed building regulations, Takeaway fined after sheep was found in ostrich curry and store fined for selling expired food.