On 14 July 2022 the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Ofcom published a joint statement on online safety and competition in digital markets. The statement examines the considerations that may apply when weighing competition goals against online safety – for example, are there limits on the requirements that the...

Transparency has long been a watchword of UK procurement law. The government has clearly signalled its intention that the new Procurement Bill, which is currently before Parliament, will enhance and extend transparency obligations. Many of these requirements relate to how a procurement is run, but the bill includes additional transparency...

First references to SAU During February and April 2023, the Subsidy Advice Unit (SAU) published its first two reports into referral requests received under the Subsidy Control Act (SCA). Under the SCA, public authorities must refer certain subsidies and subsidy schemes to the SAU for analysis. The subsidy schemes reviewed...

International legal practice Osborne Clarke LLP has advised RM plc, a leading supplier of technology and resources to the education sector, on the sale of its school Management Information System (MIS) business – known as RM Integris and RM Finance (along with RM Accounts and Access Education Budgeting) – to...

In January 2023 our Osborne Clarke Knowledge Lawyers made their business law predictions for 2023. Here, we see how those predictions are faring. General We thought that " businesses and their advisers are likely to sharpen their focus on the Opposition's emerging plans for the economy " – perhaps not...

The long-delayed transition of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) into the new body the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA) was initially intended to have been fully implemented during the course of this year, but is now expected in the course of 2024. The implementation of ARGA is intended to...

DMA designation On 6 September, the European Commission designated six big tech companies as gatekeepers in relation to 22 core platform services, which include tech services such as social media platforms, operating systems, ad tech and marketplaces. This was done in line with the Digital Markets Act (DMA). For an...

Sanctions compliance continues to challenge businesses operating in the UK and particularly those in the payments and fintech sectors. Those challenges are likely to be amplified by the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), which recently exercised new enforcement powers and the publication of guidance by the Financial Conduct Authority...

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), in its much-anticipated market study report into the housebuilding sector in England and Wales published earlier this week, would seem to have granted a momentary reprieve for the practice of so-called "land banking" but delivered a scathing assessment of the planning system. Alongside the...