Business Diary: UK Regulations - April 2015
Currently, two to three new Regulation entries are added to the Archive each day. Regulation Watch covers business related topics such as new legislation, changes in legislation, consultations and regulatory body announcements.
1st
EU Laws
EU Regulation: New rules on the labelling of fresh, chilled and frozen meat came into force on 1 April 2015.
Start Date: 1st April 2015
Rates & Reliefs
Rate Change: The Intellectual Property Office has announced the new PCT fee structure, effective from 1 April 2015.
Start Date: 1st April 2015
3rd
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: The Government is consulting on recommendations to amend the rules of procedure for the Competition Appeal Tribunal.
Response Deadline: 3rd April 2015
5th
Business Laws
New Regulation: Changes to the rules on adoption leave and pay came into force on 5 April 2015.
Start Date: 5th April 2015
6th
Business Laws
New Regulation: New consolidated National Minimum Wage regulations will come into force on 6 April 2015.
Start Date: 6th April 2015
Business Laws
New Regulation: New safety regulations for construction projects will come into force on 6 April 2015.
Start Date: 6th April 2015
Crackdowns & Amnesty
Telemarketing Crackdown: From 6 April 2015, the Government will remove the legal threshold for the ICO to clamp down on nuisance calls and text messages.
Start Date: 6th April 2015
Business Laws
New Regulation: A ban on tobacco displays at the point of sale in small shops came into force on 6 April 2015.
Start Date: 6th April 2015
9th
Compliance Guidance
Law Guide: The Government has published new guidance for vehicle manufacturers and importers on how to comply with the end-of-life vehicles regulations 2003 and 2005.
Published Date: 1st April 2015
10th
Legal Statistics
Law Statistics: According to Crossland Employment Solicitors, 26% of employers are unaware of the laws in regard to obese employees.
Published Date: 9th April 2015
Compliance Guidance
HR Alert: Irwin Mitchell is warning that employers must prepare for a rise in discrimination claims as a result of the shared parental leave rules.
Published Date: 2nd April 2015
16th
Legal Statistics
Law Statistics: According to Fisher Jones Greenwood, 11% of employees experiencing discrimination in the workplace have sought legal advice or gone to tribunal.
Published Date: 10th April 2015
EU Laws
EU Regulation: The European Parliament has approved a plan to impose a cap on older types of biofuels.
Published Date: 14th April 2015
20th
EU Laws
EU Regulation: The EU Parliament has backed plans to improve the simplified recovery process for cross-border debts.
Published Date: 16th April 2015
21st
EU Laws
EU Regulation: The EU Council has adopted legislation capping the interchange fees banks may charge retailers for credit or debit card transactions.
Published Date: 20th April 2015
23rd
Legal Statistics
Law Statistics: According to Roythornes, 52% of food manufacturers found that the cost of complying with the FIR was higher than expected.
Published Date: 2nd April 2015
24th
EU Laws
IP Alert: Pinsent Masons is warning that EU trade mark reforms could drive up the cost of registering a national trade mark in the EU.
Published Date: 22nd January 1970
Rates & Reliefs
Rate Change: PhonepayPlus has revised the administrative charges to be imposed on firms in breach of its Code of Practice.
Published Date: 10th April 2015
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: The EU Commission has launched a consultation to evaluate the effectiveness of two Directives relating to public procurement remedies.
Published Date: 24th April 2015
27th
Legal Statistics
Law Statistics: According to LexisNexis, 80% of lawyers at SMEs rate their services as ‘above average’, but only 40% of clients rate them as such.
Published Date: 20th April 2015
Court Rulings
EU Ruling: The European Court of Justice has ruled that EU animal welfare rules must apply to the transportation of live animals to non-EU countries.
Published Date: 23rd April 2015
29th
EU Laws
EU Regulation: The EU Commission, EU Council and the European Parliament have agreed on a new trademark reform package.
Published Date: 22nd April 2015
Legal Statistics
Law Statistics: According to RPC, the number of claims brought against estate agents and surveyors fell from 193 in 2013 to 67 in 2014, or 65%.
Published Date: 29th April 2015
30th
Regulatory Deadlines
Return Deadline: Operators with environmental permits submitting waste returns for Q1 2015 must do so by 30 April 2015.
Submission Deadline: 30th April 2015
