The Government is undertaking a consultation on the secondary legislation required to implement the new public procurement regime established by the Procurement Bill ...
Following the press release earlier in the day, DLUHC and DEFRA have now published the controversial proposed amendments to the Levelling-Up & Regeneration Bill (“LURB”) to unblock over 100,000 homes 'held up due to defective EU laws' ...
With the announcement of the Law Commission’s planned consultation on Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, can changes be made to clarify and condense the statutory framework for renewals? One area ripe for reform is how the level of rent is determined, and in particular, the treatment of rent-free periods where no binding authority appears to exist - leaving a variety of often conflicting County Court decisions ...
Blockchain litigation lead, Matt Green will be hosting our latest podcast series, 'In Early - The Crypto Podcast' - Listen to episode 18. This week Matt speaks to the man claiming two names - Dr Craig Wright and Satoshi Nakamoto ...
Let’s be honest, it feels gloomy at the moment. The ramifications of 14 consecutive rate rises are now materialising – creating additional hurdles for those seeking funding and bringing developments forward. Rising borrowing costs will always put pressure on the living sector. However, the UK’s real estate industry is remarkably resilient ...
Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionising the global real estate landscape. In the United States alone, AI companies are predicted to have a 1.6m sq m real estate footprint by the end of 2023, according to JLL ...
The summer is a welcome break for higher education students across Scotland. But, as coursework and exams are temporarily put to the back of minds, a potential reform is looming that could have major implications on the student living experience in Scotland. This relates to the outcome of a much-anticipated review into its purpose-built student accommodation sector (PBSA) – first initiated in 2021 by the Scottish Government ...
The new biodiversity net gain (BNG) requirements are set to come into force from November 2023. This will legally mandate securing a minimum 10 per cent biodiversity net gain from new commercial and residential developments in England, with a few exceptions. While the requirements - part of the Environment Act 2021 – will have financial and operational implications, the real estate industry has had several years to prepare for BNG ...
The UK is facing a veritable housing crunch. The gap between residential supply and demand continues to widen, and the current high interest rate environment is only serving to compound the issue – posing real challenges when it comes to funding and bringing much needed new schemes forward. One part of the residential market that is really feeling the strain of these supply constraints is the senior living sector ...
Since receiving Royal Assent on 28 April 2022, the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) has continued to lumber along - coming into effect in phases and throwing up legal complications as it goes. The government has therefore been required to create secondary legislation – regulations - to seek to clarify and untangle various provisions in the BSA. The Act is reliant on regulations to provide the detail of many of its provisions ...
Activity levels in the residential development market remain lower than developers, lenders and other real estate professionals have become accustomed to over the last 15 years. With 14 base rate rises implemented by the Bank of England (BoE) in the last 18 months - now at 5.25% - the UK is currently subject to the highest base interest rate since 2008 ...
While the next general election isn’t due until January 2025, or earlier, housing is shaping up to be a key battleground for both parties. It could arguably even decide the election. There seems to be clear blue water developing between the two main parties on this issue ...
The Planning (Agent of Change) Bill was a private member’s bill introduced in Westminster in 2018 by former government minister John Spellar to ‘require specified planning controls in relation to developments likely to be affected by existing noise sources’ ...
The Renters (Reform) Bill was given its first reading in May 2023 after five years of consultation and refinement. The Bill seeks to provide greater flexibility and security for residential tenants in England by imposing additional restrictions and obligations on private landlords. The reforms also look to improve the leasehold system through increased regulation, digitisation and standardisation. A noticeable omission from the Bill, however, is an exemption for private lettings to students ...
Chile’s Ministry of Public Works (MOP) announced 11 new projects that will be constructed throughout the country. This announcement is the first call for public works tenders since the beginning of President Boric’s term in office. The portfolio of concessions planned for 2023 calls for investments totaling USD 5.8 billion. Concessions included in the portfolio: New Route 5 in the Santiago-Los Vilos section - USD 1 ...
On August 23, 2023, the extracts from the minutes of the meeting of the Sub-commission of the Government Commission for Control over Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation No. 182/5 dated August 09, 2023, were published. (“Extracts No. 182/5”). The said Extracts No ...
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Craig Thomas and Sarah Buxton take a look at the recent changes to corporation tax. Policy changes It is fair to say that the UK’s corporation tax rate has been on something of a policy rollercoaster of late. As far back as 2016, when the rate was 20%, George Osbourne announced that he would reduce corporation tax to 17% with effect from 2020 (and even expressed his fervent desire to get the rate as low as 15% thereafter) ...
Dan Sharman and Craig Thomas take a look at the tax treatment of salary sacrifice arrangements. Background HMRC has always had a difficult relationship with salary sacrifice arrangements. On the one hand it acknowledges that such arrangements are a legitimate way of employees and employers reducing their tax liability, whilst on the other hand it has looked for ways in which to reduce the amount of tax leakage occurring from such arrangements ...
On July 26, 2023, SERNAC published a new interpretative circular that refers to the protection of the real estate consumer in the sale of real estate and its preparatory acts. Although this circular establishes mandatory guidelines for SERNAC officials, it also constitutes a guide to be taken into consideration by real estate providers when complying with their legal obligations ...
Belgium had accumulated a significant legislative backlog within insolvency law. The European Directive 2019/1023 on restructuring had to be transposed into national law by the member states by 17 July 2022 at the latest. The Belgian government did not submit a draft bill to this effect until 20 March 2023. This draft has since been voted into law and will enter into force on 1 September 2023. Several amendments are being made to (among others) Book XX of the Belgian Economic Law ...
The government has published its long-awaited response to the consultation on implementing the new building control regime for higher-risk buildings (HRBs) and wider changes to the building regulations for all buildings. The provisions will be implemented through secondary legislation (The Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (England) Regulations 2023 and The Building Regulations etc. (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2023)) that will come into force on 1 October 2023 ...
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The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans upheld parts of a Texas District Court ruling by restricting the use of Mifepristone, while allowing Mifepristone to remain on the market.[1] This is the latest ruling in an ongoing legal battle that has left the future of abortion medications in a state of flux. Dinsmore previously discussed the original April 2023 ruling that led to the most recent development ...
