Business Diary: UK Regulations - May 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
Business Laws
New Regulation: Amendments to the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing came into effect on 1 May 2015.
Start Date: 1st May 2015
8th
EU Laws
EU Regulation: The EU Council and EU Parliament have agreed on a draft directive regarding electronic payment services.
Published Date: 5th May 2015
Regulator Services
Ad Services: The ASA has introduced a new advertising policy requiring businesses and individuals to limit their complaints to no more than three issues.
Published Date: 1st May 2015
11th
Regulator Services
Legal Alert: The ICO has said that firms can process personal data contained in big data sets without consent if they can demonstrate a 'legitimate interest' in doing so.
Published Date: 8th May 2015
12th
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: The EU Commission launches a consultation on the implementation of an EU system for tracking and tracing tobacco products and security features.
Published Date: 7th May 2015
13th
Compliance Guidance
Compliance Support: DriverConnex has launched a new app to help employers and company car drivers to comply with the new drug driving law.
Published Date: 12th May 2015
Business Laws
New Regulation: The Welsh Government has announced a new law containing provisions to improve waste management and the carrier bag charging scheme.
Published Date: 12th May 2015
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: The Welsh Government has launched a consultation on the regulation of wages for agricultural workers.
Published Date: 11th May 2015
14th
Regulator Services
Regulator Activity: Staff at the European Patent Office have announced that they will go on strike on 11 June 2015.
Published Date: 13th May 2015
Court Rulings
EU Ruling: The EU Court of Justice has ruled that a copyright holder was allowed to prohibit the use of protected works in advertisements under the ISD.
Ruling Date: 13th May 2015
15th
Compliance Guidance
Employee Law Guide: Nacro and CIPD have published new guidance to help employers understand their legal rights and responsibilities when recruiting ex-offenders.
Published Date: 14th May 2015
Court Rulings
UK Ruling: The Supreme Court rules that businesses bringing 'passing off' claims must have a UK customer base before they can bring those claims in the UK.
Ruling Date: 13th May 2015
Regulation Consultations
Export Consultation: UK Export Finance is consulting on proposed changes to its anti-bribery and corruption policy.
Response Deadline: 15th May 2015
Regulation Consultations
IP Consultation: The Intellectual Property Office is consulting on draft regulations regarding the Design Opinions Service.
Response Deadline: 15th May 2015
18th
Legal Statistics - Risks
Law Statistics: According to Pinsent Masons, the number of people prosecuted for fraud and corruption offences fell by a fifth in 2011-14 despite an increase in the number of tip-offs.
Published Date: 15th May 2015
19th
Legal Statistics
According to a WIPR survey, two thirds of people do not believe the unitary patent will come into force by 2016, despite the EPO's prediction.
Published Date: 18th May 2015
Legal Statistics - Risks
Law Statistics: According to Mercury xRM, approximately 25% of UK recruitment agencies are uncertain as to how recent HMRC legislation will affect their business and many are not taking steps to comply.
Published Date: 15th May 2015
20th
Compliance Guidance
New Regulation: The UK Government has announced new measures to support SMEs including a Small Business Conciliation Service to settle payment disputes.
Published Date: 19th May 2015
Compliance Guidance
Regulator Guide: Companies House issues new guidance on requesting and managing authentication codes for online company information filing.
Published Date: 18th May 2015
Legal Statistics
Law Statistics: According to the Close Brothers Business Barometer, 53% of UK SMEs are in favour of shared parental leave rights.
Published Date: 14th May 2015
21st
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: The Scottish Government launches a consultation on proposals to reduce the length of time during which certain offenders would have to disclose their convictions to prospective employers.
Published Date: 20th May 2015
22nd
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: DEFRA is consulting on amendments to the laws for producer responsibility for batteries and packaging waste.
Response Deadline: 22nd May 2015
Compliance Guidance
Data Guide: The EU data protection regulator has said that data controllers may give their suppliers freedom to enter into sub-processing arrangements if the supplier has put Binding Corporate Rules in place.
Published Date: 22nd May 2015
26th
Regulator Services
IP Services: The European Patent Office has revised its proposed renewal fees for the unitary patent.
Published Date: 7th May 2015
27th
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: The EU Commission has launched a consultation on the issues surrounding the EU's Blue Card and labour migration policies and how they can be improved.
Published Date: 27th May 2015
29th
Regulation Consultations
Law Consultation: The EU Commission has launched a public consultation on the impacts and issues surrounding ecolabels for fisheries and aquaculture products.
Published Date: 8th May 2015
EU Laws
EU Regulation: Ministers in the Competitiveness Council have agreed on new rules extending legal protections to consumers booking combined travel online.
Published Date: 28th May 2015
Legal Statistics - Risks
Law Statistics: According to Daisy Group, 66% of UK workers would be unwilling to report a serious data breach in spite of the legal risk to their employer.
Published Date: 28th May 2015
