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Home Office reconfirms Ukraine Schemes do not lead to settlement
27 February 2024New Immigration Rules laid on 19 February 2024 have made immediate changes to the Ukraine Schemes, including closing the Ukraine Family Scheme. A separate announcement reconfirms that the Ukraine Schemes do not lead to settlement, but that an 18-month extension will be available for scheme participants from early 2025. Participants wishing to settle in the UK should urgently review their options ahead of restrictions to work and partner routes being implemented in March and April 2024.
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Difference between UK consumer laws (including DMCC Act) and equivalent EU laws
23 February 2024This note sets out the key differences in consumer law between UK and EU consumer laws. This includes, for the UK, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA), Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, SI 2008/1277 (CPR) and proposed changes under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act 2024 which received Royal Assent in May 2024. For the EU it includes the Omnibus Directive (EU) 2019/2161, the Sale of Goods Directive (EU) 2019/771 and the Digital Content Directive (EU) 2019/770 (DCD) which have become law in EEA member states since the UK left the EU.
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New Immigration Rules place greater restrictions on care workers
22 February 2024From 11 March 2024 care providers in England cannot sponsor new care workers under the Skilled Worker route unless they are registered with the Care Quality Commission. From the same date, newly sponsored carers can no longer bring their family members to the UK.
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The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023: first changes set to be introduced
22 February 2024The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023 and introduces several changes which are intended to prevent abuse of UK corporate structures and reduce economic crime. ECCTA will come into force in stages and it is anticipated that the first changes will be introduced on 4 March 2024 (although this date is dependent on parliamentary timetables).
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White Paper consultation response: regulating AI in the workplace
20 February 2024In March 2023 the government published its White Paper on AI regulation. In less than a year, development in the field has been rapid, with regulators and legislators chasing to keep up. The government has now published its response to the consultation on the White Paper. We focus on what this tells us about future regulation for the use of AI in the workplace.
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Changes to right to work compliance: key takeaways for employers
16 February 2024The Home Office recently updated the Employer’s guide to right to work checks. The guide contains references to the increased £60,000 civil penalty for illegal working, along with some small but significant changes that impact how employers complete compliant right to work checks. In this article, we highlight the key changes to help employers stay on top of right to work compliance.
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Guidance on key concepts of privilege from Court of Appeal
15 February 2024The Court of Appeal ("COA") has handed down a judgment dealing with a number of important points regarding the scope of legal professional privilege and the iniquity exception.
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New visitor rules benefit business visitors to the UK
15 February 2024Since 31 January 2024, the Immigration Rules for visitors have been liberalised to allow a wider range of activities for business visitors, including in the areas of intra-corporate activities, remote working, providing legal services and carrying out research. The Permitted Paid Engagement visitor route has been expanded and incorporated into the standard visitor route, meaning these visitors can stay for up to six months.
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What’s happening in UK employment law in 2024: timeline
15 February 2024With a raft of upcoming legislative changes, there’s a lot to keep on top of in 2024. We’ve produced a timeline to help keep track of what’s ahead.
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Professor’s ‘anti-Zionist’ beliefs were protected
13 February 2024Despite finding that a professor at the University of Bristol’s comments on Zionism merited disciplinary action against him, the Employment Tribunal concluded that dismissal was too severe a sanction and had been influenced by his beliefs concerning Zionism, which were protected under the Equality Act 2010. Dr Miller had therefore been discriminated against because of his anti-Zionist beliefs.
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Ads & Brands Law Digest: January 2024
12 February 2024Welcome to the latest edition of our Digest, covering legal and regulatory developments from the last few weeks relevant to advertising, marketing, and brand-owning businesses. As usual, for each item we provide a succinct summary accompanied by a link to the full text of the relevant official source or our own report.
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Five top tips for using biometric data in the workplace
08 February 2024As we become more accustomed to using our faces or fingerprints to unlock devices in our everyday life, it’s not surprising that UK employers are considering using biometric systems in the workplace. However, employers need to address the significant challenges involved with using biometric data.
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Gender identity data in the workplace
08 February 2024Safeguarding all personal data not only upholds data subjects’ rights but also cements trust and good employee relations. Special category data must be treated with more protection because it is sensitive, but information about gender does not automatically fall into this category and in many cases will fall into a data-lacuna. A recent case reminds us that employers nonetheless need to take great care with gender identity data.
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Apprenticeships: jurisdictional variations
08 February 2024It’s National Apprenticeship Week and, continuing our focus on hiring apprentices, we consider how the requirements for apprenticeships vary across the United Kingdom, and highlight key considerations for employers operating across different jurisdictions when hiring apprentices.
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Labour plans changes to discrimination law
06 February 2024The Labour party has set out new proposals to change discrimination law, including the idea of extending equal pay claims to cover ethnicity and disability. This is likely to make employment claims much more complex and costly, and much slower to resolve. Here’s our take.
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Court backs decisions regarding cancellation of nickel trades
06 February 2024Towards the end of 2023, the Administrative Court handed down a judgment in R (on the application of Elliott Associates LP and others) v The London Metal Exchange and LME Clear Limited [2023] EWHC 2969 (Admin), rejecting a challenge to decisions made regarding the cancellation of nickel trades in a “disorderly market” in March 2022 and associated claims for damages. We consider key aspects of the decision and implications for the market.
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What will change for VSPs under the Online Safety Act 2023?
05 February 2024The Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA) received Royal Assent in October 2023. Video sharing platforms (VSPs) have however been subject to a specific regime which has been in force since November 2020. That regime remains in place for now, but it will be replaced (in due course) by the OSA. What do these regimes require and what will happen to the video sharing regime as the OSA takes effect?
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UK Migration Advisory Committee to advise on new Immigration Salary List
01 February 2024The Home Office has asked the Migration Advisory Committee to conduct a ‘rapid review’ of which occupations should be initially included on the Immigration Salary List (ISL). This list will replace the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) for the Skilled Worker route from April 2024. Employers experiencing skills shortages should consider submitting evidence to the full ISL review, which is expected to be commissioned shortly.
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Ten top tips for employing an apprentice
01 February 2024With National Apprenticeship Week coming up next week, it’s a good time to think about hiring apprentices. Many organisations are looking to recruit for their September intake in order to make good use of their Apprenticeship Levy funds. Here are our ten top tips for employing an apprentice.
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Employment Tribunal fees: the government strikes back
01 February 2024The government has published a consultation proposing to reintroduce ‘modest’ fees in the Employment Tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal.