Energy Act 2004 meaning

Mergers Government publishes The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (Water Mergers) (Consequential Amendments) Regulation 2024 The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (Water Mergers) (Consequential Amendments) Regulation 2024 (the Regulations) (SI 2024/840) have been issued, accompanied by an explanatory memorandum. These Regulations deliver technical updates to the Water Mergers (Modification of Enactments) Regulations 2004 (SI 2004/3202) (the 2004 Regulations), prompted by Royal Assent to the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA). The aim is to prevent the 2004 Regulations from cross-referring to wording in the Enterprise Act 2002 that has since been removed or no longer matches the current text. Under the Water Industry Act 1991, Part 3 of the Enterprise Act 2002—containing the principal statutory framework governing mergers—applies to mergers between water and sewerage businesses in England and Wales, subject to the modifications specified in the 2004 Regulations. The new Regulations revise those modifications so that they align with the amendments to Part 3 of the Enterprise Act made by Schedule 6...

In this issue: Public procurement Governance Education Social housing Children's social care Social care Healthcare Local government finance Environmental law and climate change Planning Daily and weekly news alerts New and updated content Public procurement Damages are an adequate remedy in a procurement dispute despite no sufficiently serious breach (Millbrook Healthcare Ltd v Devon County Council) In Millbrook Healthcare Ltd v Devon County Council, the Technology and Construction Court (TCC) determined that, at the interim stage of a procurement claim, whether a breach is “sufficiently serious” is not directly relevant to the question of adequacy of damages; damages can still be the proper remedy. The TCC reviewed established authorities confirming that damages are available in procurement challenges only where the contracting authority’s breach is “sufficiently serious”, a test grounded in EU law. The issue was recently examined in Braceurself v NHS England, where the TCC held that the “sufficiently serious” assessment...

What is the CNI regime? Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) encompasses the physical and digital assets, sites, and networks that keep a nation running, underpinning the health, safety, security, and economic prosperity of its people. In the UK, the basis for CNI rests on a mix of long-standing government programmes, statutory duties, and policy directives intended to protect pivotal industries. Together, they support the functioning of the country and the well-being of its population. Collectively, these elements are indispensable to national operations and the welfare of citizens. The regime arose from the imperative to shield vital services and infrastructure central to national security, economic resilience, and public protection—a subject under review by many states from the mid-twentieth century. That imperative sharpened towards the close of the twentieth century as threats from terrorism, espionage, and cyberattacks intensified. Practical momentum followed with bodies such as the National Security Advice Centre (NSAC) and the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre (NISCC), created in the 1990s and early 2000s to deliver specialist guidance...

The RTFO The RTFO is one of the government’s principal policies to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from fuels delivered for use in: road vehicles non-road transport, covering: non-road mobile machinery (NRMM) inland waterway vessels that do not normally operate at sea tractors recreational craft that do not normally operate at sea alternatively powered trains that do not already fall within the definition of NRMM (eg hydrogen fuel cell-powered trains) alternatively powered non-road vehicles that do not already fall within the definition of NRMM aircraft maritime, but only where the fuel used is a renewable fuel of non-biological origin (RFNBO) The RTFO represents one of several government measures that support the UK’s broader renewables and carbon reduction ambitions, including targets under the Climate Change Act 2008 (CCA 2008). It was introduced to comply with the EU Renewable Energy Directive 2009/28/EC (RED) and via secondary legislation...

This table outlines all concluded Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) phase 2 merger inquiries and completed Competition Commission (CC) merger inquiries under the Enterprise Act 2002, plus CC inquiries under the Fair Trading Act 1973, dating back to 2000. For details on live inquiries, see UK mergers—ongoing cases tracker. For closed phase 1 inquiries, see UK phase 1 mergers—closed cases tracker. For appeals, see UK competition appeals—ongoing cases tracker. 2026 Parties Industry sector Issues Decision Constellation Developments Limited/ABVR Holdings Limited (completed acquisition) Motor industry Horizontal overlaps in the provision of business-to-business (B2B) used vehicle auction services across Great Britain Cleared—05/03/2026 Interim report published—22/01/2026 Administrative timetable published—17/10/2025 Referred to phase 2—13/10/2025 Aramark/Entier (completed acquisition) Catering services Horizontal overlaps in the provision of catering and related facilities management services to the offshore energy sector in the UK North Sea Prohibition; completed merger unwound—15/01/2026 Interim report published—24/10/2025 Administrative timetable published—12/08/2025 Referred to phase 2—05/08/2025 ...

Role of material considerations in planning decisions In determining an application for planning permission, or for permission in principle, section 70(2) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (TCPA 1990) requires the decision-maker to take into account: the development plan’s provisions, in so far as they are relevant to the proposal a neighbourhood development plan in post-examination draft form, where pertinent to the application in England, from a date yet to be set, any national development management policies, to the extent they are material considerations concerning the use of the Welsh language, where material any local finance considerations, where relevant all other material considerations Each item is to be considered only so far as it is material to the application in question, together with any material considerations arising. Section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (PCPA 2004) states that, if a determination under the planning Acts is to have regard to the development plan,...