Insights

The first applications to lift an automatic suspension under the Procurement Act 2023 (the Act) have recently been decided. In Parkingeye Limited v Velindre University NHS Trust & Anor [2026] EWHC 1019 (TCC), handed down on 1 May 2026, HHJ Keyser KC dismissed applications by two NHS contracting authorities to lift the suspension preventing them from concluding a car park management services contract. This is the first judicial consideration of the new test under section 102(2) of the Act.

The president of the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) has signalled a more rigorous approach to scrutinising opt-out collective actions at the certification stage, with particular attention to whether the financial benefits of such claims flow to the claimant class or primarily to their lawyers and funders. Coming at a time when the UK Law Commission is consulting on expanding the scope of the opt-out regime, this development warrants careful consideration by all those with interests in the UK litigation funding market.

On 12 March 2026, the USTR self-initiated Section 301(b) investigations against 60 of the United States' largest trading partners, including the United Kingdom. The investigations will examine whether each economy's acts, policies, and practices relating to the failure to impose and effectively enforce a ban on goods produced with forced labour are unreasonable or discriminatory and burden or restrict U.S. commerce.