The government has published updated guidance for employers that applies in England from Monday 19 July 2021, to coincide with the ending of almost all remaining mandatory COVID-19 related restrictions. The upshot of the guidance is that the government shifts responsibility to employers to determine when and how to initiate, or ramp up, a return to the office, including what ongoing safety measures might be required.
COVID-19 represents one of the greatest ever shocks to our economies and, in consequence, to the business models of financial institutions and the way they do business. While many changes to business processes and operations were already taking place prior to the pandemic, COVID-19 has given many added impetus and urgency. Decision-makers must choose between adapting a wait-and-see approach or implementing more proactive strategies to safeguard and, if possible, grow their businesses.
On June 8, 2021, the White House published a set of reports on the 100-day interagency reviews conducted pursuant to Executive Order 14017 “America’s Supply Chains” (“the Reports”). The Reports were accompanied by a White House Fact Sheet summarizing the key findings, expressing support for some of the policy recommendations, and announcing additional Biden Administration measures directed at strengthening the resilience of the country’s supply chains.
Welcome to our Virtual Global Trade Conference, a virtual offering for all our clients and friends worldwide. Baker McKenzie’s international trade compliance lawyers from around the world discussed the major developments impacting international trade. The sessions include trade policy, exports, sanctions, customs, China trade developments and trade developments.
On 30 June 2021, the Government outlined its main legislative proposals for a new UK subsidy control regime. It introduced its long-awaited Subsidy Control Bill (the Bill) to Parliament, published a number of policy papers and provided a response to the public consultation that ran from 3 February to 31 March this year.
The UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) entered into force as a replacement for the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) due to Brexit, to leverage Vietnam-UK trade relations. To implement preferential tariff treatment under the UKVFTA, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) issued Circular No. 02/2021/TT-BCT that will regulate the origin issues and take effect on 27 June 2021.
A belief that biological sex is immutable is a protected belief under the Equality Act 2010, the Employment Appeal Tribunal has ruled. The case will now return to the employment tribunal to decide whether the claimant was discriminated against because of her belief when her consultancy contract was not renewed.
On 1 July, HM Treasury published a consultation that takes forward three key recommendations from Lord Hill’s UK Listings Review (click here for further information on that Review). It sets out how the Government proposes to: (i) review and potentially replace the prospectus regime that the UK has inherited from the EU; (ii) give the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) new rule making responsibilities that will allow it to incorporate a replacement prospectus regime into its handbook; and (iii) amend the prospectus liability regime so that there are fewer barriers to the inclusion of more forward-looking information in prospectuses.
‘Fire-and-rehire’, the practice in which employers can dismiss employees and engage them on new/different terms (usually where consent is not obtained) has recently been in the spotlight, following reports suggesting that their use has increased during the pandemic.
The Upper Tribunal upheld a First Tier Tribunal decision that a project manager was within IR35 as he would have been an employee if he had been engaged directly. The case (Northern Light Solutions Limited v Revenue and Customs [2021] UKUT 134 (TCC)) relates to the pre-6 April 2021 position according to which it was for the contractor to determine whether he was inside or outside IR35.