This month includes procurement, net-zero emissions, judicial review, fixed recoverable costs, construction contracts, austerity and political uncertainty, the UK companies register, and the Modern Slavery Act.
Welcome to our Public Matters Newsletter.
This month we have:
Nat Avdiu summarises the High Court case of Amey Highways Ltd v West Sussex County Council, and looks at the implications for contracting authorities.
Lynette Wieland looks at the impact of the ‘Net Zero, The UK’s contribution to stopping global warming’ report on public bodies, which was published by the government’s advisory Committee on Climate Change last month.
Mia Plume highlights the recommendations made by Jackson; provides an overview of the government’s proposals under the consultation; and provides an insight of how it applies to the public sector.
Many of our public sector clients regularly undertake building works using NEC3 and NEC contracts. Martin Cannon reviews the recent case of Sitol UK Ltd v Finegold and another [2018], and its impact on the public sector.
Emma Grant explores whether the proposed reforms live up to their headlines of being “the biggest changes to the UK system for setting up and operating companies since the UK company register was created in 1844”.
Emma Grant looks at the current status of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, and what we can expect to happen next.
Law firm Browne Jacobson has collaborated with Wiltshire Council and Christ Church Business School on the launch event of The Council Company Best Practice and Innovation Network, a platform which brings together academic experts and senior local authority leaders, allowing them to share best practice in relation to council companies.
In the Autumn Statement delivered on 17 November, rises to the National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates were announced, to take effect from 1 April 2023.
Announced in September but scrapped on 17 November the investment zone proposals were very short lived. The proposal has now morphed into the proposal for a smaller number of clustered zones earmarked for investment.
Settlement agreements are commonplace in an employment context and are ordinarily used to provide the parties to the agreement with certainty following the conclusion of an employment relationship.
On 2 November 2022, the Supreme Court handed down its judgment in the much awaiting case of Hillside Parks Ltd v Snowdonia National Park Authority [2022] UKSC 30. The Court’s judgment suggests that the long established practice of using drop-in applications is in fact much more restricted than previously thought. This judgment therefore has significant implications for both the developers and local planning authorities.
In ‘failure to remove’ claims, the claimant alleges abuse in the family home and asserts that the local authority should have known about the abuse and/or that they should have removed the claimant from the family home and into care earlier.
Across the UK, homelessness is an urgent crisis, and one that is set to grow amid the rising cost of living. Local authorities are at the forefront of responding to this crisis, but with a lack of properties that are suitable for social housing across the UK, vulnerable individuals and families are often housed in temporary accommodation.
Claims arising from interest-only mortgages have been farmed in volume. Many such claims to date have sought to drive a narrative that interest-only mortgages are an inherently toxic product and brokers were negligent simply for suggesting them. Taylor is a helpful recalibration, focussing instead on what the monies raised by the mortgage product were being used for and whether the client understood the inherent risks.
Settlement agreements in an employment context are ordinarily used to provide both parties with certainty following the conclusion of an employment relationship – but what happens when there is alleged discrimination after entering into a settlement agreement?
