Browse regulations

Amends the Non-Contentious Probate Fees Order 2004 by increasing the application for a grant fee to £273 and omitting the personal application fee. Extends to England and Wales, effective January 2022.

Probate fees are a tax on death imposed by a government monopoly. The £273 fee extracts revenue from grieving families with no market competition to discipline pricing. Omitting the personal application fee removes a cheaper option, reducing consumer choice. Government services should be funded through general taxation rather than creating access barriers to legal administration of estates.

These Regulations amend the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to establish a new 'NIMAR' (Northern Ireland MHRA Authorised Route) pathway for supplying certain medicinal products from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. They create a list of 'listed NIMAR products' maintained by the licensing authority, impose extensive obligations on licence holders supplying these products (including compliance with good distribution practice, record-keeping, recall procedures, and quality systems), and modify wholesale dealer and manufacturer licence requirements to accommodate this new supply route while maintaining UKMA(GB) or UKMA(UK) authorisation requirements.

These Regulations add complex new regulatory machinery creating a parallel supply pathway with duplicative requirements rather than simplifying post-Brexit medicine supply. The NIMAR route imposes extensive licence holder obligations (regulation 43ZA's 11 detailed paragraphs on compliance, record-keeping, recall procedures, quality systems, and falsified product reporting) that add cost and administrative burden. The arbitrary 'listed' product designation creates government-controlled market segmentation rather than allowing free movement of medicines. This represents regulatory proliferation—layering new compliance requirements atop existing ones rather than removing the underlying barriers that necessitate such workarounds. The Protocol on Northern Ireland/Spalter, the licensing authority's broad discretion over product listing, and the complex conditional requirements suggest this is bureaucratic management of a self-created problem rather than genuine deregulation.

These Regulations amend the Statutory Sick Pay (Medical Evidence) Regulations 1985 to temporarily extend the self-certification period for sickness absence from 7 days to 28 days. This applied to incapacity spells commencing between 17th December 2021 and 26th January 2022, or to spells already in progress on 17th December 2021 that had lasted no more than 7 days by that date. The measure was designed to reduce administrative burdens on GPs and employers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The regulation is permanently expired by its own terms — the inclusive period ended on 26th January 2022, nearly four years ago. No new spells of incapacity can now fall within its scope. While the temporary reduction in administrative burden was sensible during the pandemic, the underlying policy question (whether to permanently extend self-certification periods) belongs in primary legislation, not in a time-limited statutory instrument. Keeping this on the books serves no purpose and creates confusion about the current state of the law.

These Regulations amend Commission Regulation (EC) No 798/2008, which establishes lists of third countries, territories, zones or compartments from which poultry and poultry products may be imported into and transit through the UK. The amendments update opening dates for Australian poultry exports and add ten new Ukrainian regional codes (UA-2.5 through UA-2.11) with specific municipalities and dates for WGM (wild game), POU (poultry), and RAT (ratite) product categories, reflecting regional disease control zones.

This regulation restricts poultry trade through bureaucratic regional approval lists, raising costs for consumers and limiting supply competition. While disease control is a legitimate objective, requiring pre-approved country/region lists rather than allowing border inspection and certification creates unnecessary trade friction. The complex Ukrainian regional subdivisions (UA-2.4 through UA-2.11) exemplify how such regimes proliferate compliance burdens. Free trade in agricultural products is achievable through simpler sanitary certification mechanisms at the border, without maintaining elaborate approved-country schedules that serve domestic producer protectionism disguised as public health policy.

The Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme (Amendment) Order 2021 amends the UK Emissions Trading Scheme Order 2020 to: (1) treat biofuel aviation emissions as zero where emission factor is zero; (2) extend free allocation provisions to 'former hospital or small emitters and ultra-small emitters'; (3) allow non-aircraft operators to submit emissions monitoring plans; (4) modify penalty and allowance calculation formulas; (5) make numerous technical amendments to monitoring, reporting and allocation procedures.

The UK ETS represents a market-distorting cap-and-trade system that imposes substantial compliance costs on regulated entities without clear evidence of net environmental benefit. The free allocation provisions for 'former hospital or small emitters' exemplify government picking winners, creating competitive distortions. Expanding the scheme to allow non-operators to submit monitoring plans increases regulatory reach and administrative burden without corresponding benefit. Biofuel zero-rating provisions distort fuel markets by privileging certain energy sources. The complex penalty formulas (FA adjustments, D/Y calculations) add compliance complexity without addressing fundamental flaws in carbon pricing—namely, that the artificial scarcity created by caps raises costs for British businesses while emissions simply shift to unregulated jurisdictions (carbon leakage). The scheme's survival post-Brexit should be questioned rather than expanded.

This Order makes consequential provisions and modifications to various UK Acts to accommodate the Age of Criminal Responsibility (Scotland) Act 2019, which raised Scotland's age of criminal responsibility to 12. It establishes procedures for sharing police information about conduct by children under 12, creates an independent reviewer mechanism for disclosure decisions, extends Scottish investigative powers to other UK police forces (British Transport Police, Civil Nuclear Constabulary, Ministry of Defence Police, etc.), and creates offences for obstructing investigations into incidents involving children under 12 who behave violently or sexually coercively.

This Order perpetuates and extends a flawed premise from the 2019 Act—that children under 12 should be shielded from any formalised accountability for serious wrongdoing. While the 2019 Act raised the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland to 12, this Order compounds that decision by: (1) creating elaborate bureaucratic hurdles (independent reviewer, sheriff appeals) before childhood conduct information can be disclosed; (2) extending Scotland's approach across UK policing agencies; and (3) establishing new offences for obstructing investigations into conduct that, if committed by an older child, would be crimes. Victims of serious violent or sexual conduct by children under 12 deserve resolution and protection, yet this regime prioritises the child's categorisation over efficient justice. The Order's complexity impedes police work while adding no compensatory benefit to victims.

Post-Brexit amendment to the Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018 that replaces EU references with UK equivalents: substituting Information Commissioner guidance for EU guidance, replacing EU/European standards with UK, European and internationally accepted standards, replacing 'Member States of the EU' with 'areas of the United Kingdom', and omitting Article 4. Applies to UK territory including territorial sea and designated continental shelf areas.

This amendment is purely a technical post-Brexit correction that substitutes broken EU references with functional UK equivalents. It does not expand regulatory scope or impose new burdens—rather, it ensures the existing 2018 NIS Regulations remain coherent in a non-EU context. Deleting it would leave nonsensical EU references (e.g., 'Member States of the EU') in place without removing the underlying regulatory framework, achieving nothing. The Information Commissioner is better positioned than the EU to issue guidance tailored to UK circumstances.

Amendment to Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel and Operator Liability) Regulations 2021, effective 18 December 2021. Amends testing and self-isolation requirements for international travellers to England, introduces definitions for 'relevant child' and 'optional day 2 test', adds exemptions for certain worker categories (elite sportspersons, performing arts professionals, film production), creates offences for providing false information under Self-Isolation Regulations with escalating penalties (£1,000-£10,000), and adds sporting events to Schedule 5.

COVID-era travel restrictions that restrict freedom of movement, impose substantial compliance costs on travellers and the travel industry, create arbitrary exemptions for politically connected sectors (elite sports, performing arts) while ordinary citizens face mandatory testing and isolation, and criminalise honest errors with escalating fines up to £10,000. These regulations wereemergency measures that should sunset, not become permanent fixtures — their retention contradicts the principle that regulatory burdens must be justified by demonstrated necessity, not inherited惯性. The complexity itself is a hidden tax on compliance.

The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development etc.) (England) (Amendment) (No. 3) Order 2021 amends the GPDO 2015 to: (1) update outdated policy reference dates from February 2019 to July 2021; (2) insert new Class G permitting moveable structures (e.g., marquees, awnings) for pubs and restaurants within strict size/height limits; (3) replace Class BB with an expanded version covering moveable structures at historic visitor attractions and listed pubs/restaurants, subject to prior approval procedures including Historic England consultation; (4) amend Class BA to relax restrictions on local authority markets by removing 'at any time' allowance while narrowing SSSI/scheduled monument exclusions; (5) extend emergency development provisions by 12 months; (6) insert new Class TA permitting Crown development on closed defence sites with conditions including contamination/flood risk assessment and prior approval thresholds for larger developments.

This regulation expands permitted development rights rather than restricting them. It relaxes planning controls for pubs, restaurants, and visitor attractions (allowing temporary structures), enables Crown development on unused defence sites, and extends emergency provisions. Britons would be worse off if deleted because: (1) pubs and restaurants would lose the ability to add outdoor seating/structures without full planning applications, harming hospitality recovery; (2) historic buildings and visitor attractions would face higher costs for adaptive reuse; (3) the Crown could not efficiently develop surplus defence land for beneficial purposes; (4) local authorities would face heavier regulatory burdens for markets. The prior approval safeguards and size/height/positioning restrictions appropriately balance reduced red tape with protection of amenity and heritage.

These are transitional regulations bringing into force provisions of the National Security and Investment Act 2021 on 4th January 2022, while preserving the application of the Enterprise Act 2002 to ongoing merger cases where intervention notices were issued or CMA references were pending before the commencement date. They ensure legal continuity during the regulatory transition.

These regulations facilitate the implementation of the National Security and Investment Act 2021, which expanded government intervention in mergers through national security screening — a classic example of bureaucratic expansion dressed as national security. The transitional provisions perpetuate the old Enterprise Act regime for existing cases, but this merely delays the application of a fundamentally interventionist framework. Rather than smoothing a transition between regulatory regimes, these regulations enable a new layer of state power over acquisitions. The regulation has no intrinsic merit; it merely administers a handover to greater government control.

Grants the College of Legal Practice Limited (a private company) degree-awarding powers for five specified taught awards (Master of Law, Master of Science, Master of Business Administration in Legal Practice, plus Postgraduate Certificate and Diploma) for a fixed term expiring 29 April 2028, limited to enrolled students only.

This Order liberalizes educational provision by allowing a private company to award degrees, introducing competition into a sector traditionally dominated by monopoly universities. Deleting it would restrict consumer choice and maintain university monopolies on degree-granting. While imperfect as a government-granted privilege, it is pro-competitive in practice.

The Electric Vehicles (Smart Charge Points) Regulations 2021 mandate that charge points sold for cars and vans in England, Wales, and Scotland must have 'smart functionality' enabling them to send/receive information via communications networks, provide demand side response services, have default charging hours outside peak hours (8-11am and 4-10pm weekdays), implement random delays up to 600-1800 seconds, measure electricity import/export, and come with statements of compliance and technical files. The regulations apply to private and workplace charge points (but not public or rapid charge points) and include enforcement provisions with civil sanctions.

These regulations impose command-and-control technical mandates that distort market outcomes. Mandating specific delay durations (600/1800 seconds), pre-set default charging hours, and rigid smart functionality requirements based on regulator preferences rather than consumer demand adds compliance costs without clear consumer benefit. While grid stability is a legitimate concern, mandating specific technical solutions crowds out market-discovered innovations in smart charging. Consumers who want these features can purchase them voluntarily; those who prefer unrestricted use of their own property are prevented from doing so. The 10-year record-keeping requirement and technical file mandates add administrative burden that raises prices and creates barriers to entry for smaller manufacturers. A genuine free market approach would let consumers and manufacturers discover optimal smart charging solutions through competition, not bureaucratic ukase.

The Transfer of Functions (Vaccine Damage Payments) Order 2021 transfers responsibility for vaccine damage payments functions from the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. It provides for the transfer of associated property, rights, and liabilities, continuity of legal proceedings, validation of existing instruments, and handling of documents/forms referencing the old department. Comes into force 18th January 2022.

This is a purely administrative machinery-of-government Order that ensures legal continuity during a departmental transfer. Deleting it would create legal chaos: ongoing legal proceedings would be in limbo, property rights and liabilities would be uncertain, and government instruments and forms referencing the old Secretary of State would lack proper legal effect. This Order imposes no regulatory burden, restricts no trade, and adds no gold-plating - it simply facilitates the orderly transfer of an existing function between departments. Britons would be worse off without this framework providing certainty during the transition.

The Wine (Amendment) Regulations 2021 implements the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) wine trade provisions post-Brexit. It amends the Food (Lot Marking) Regulations 1996 to create exceptions for EU Annex 15 wine lot marking, adds transitional enforcement leniency (until May 2023 for wholesalers, immediate for retailers) in the Wine Regulations 2011 and Food Information Regulations 2014 for EU Annex 15 wine, and modifies Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/273 to add UK-specific definitions (GB Annex 15 wine, Appendix C certificate, Harmonized System) and remove EU import certification requirements while requiring Appendix C certificates for UK exports to the EU.

This regulation perpetuates EU-derived bureaucracy rather than reducing it. The TCA's own provisions are beneficial (mutual recognition, simplified procedures), but this amendment largely maintains the regulatory infrastructure from EU Regulation 1308/2013 and Delegated Regulation 2018/273 rather than replacing it with a streamlined UK regime. The transitional enforcement exemptions merely delay compliance costs—they don't eliminate them. The new definitions (GB Annex 15 wine, Appendix C certificates) create parallel UK-specific requirements alongside existing EU rules, adding complexity without meaningful liberalisation. Deleting this would force Parliament to create genuinely British wine trade regulations fit for our independent trade policy, rather than inheriting and gold-plating EU bureaucracy.

This Order amends the Foot and Mouth Disease (England) Order 2006 and the Avian Influenza and Influenza of Avian Origin in Mammals (England) (No. 2) Order 2006. It introduces new definitions (alert exercise, national accreditation standard, national contingency plan, national reference laboratory, OIE manual, wild game bird, wild game bird product), adds requirements for diagnostic tests using OIE standards, mandates alert exercises for contingency plans, establishes biosecurity standards for laboratories handling live foot-and-mouth virus, creates restrictions on wild game bird product movements from protection/surveillance/restricted zones, and makes numerous other amendments to licensing, movement controls, and record-keeping requirements for poultry and captive birds.

Animal disease control is a legitimate government function to prevent catastrophic economic losses to agriculture and protect food security. Without statutory disease controls, the UK livestock sector would face existential risk from foot-and-mouth disease and avian influenza outbreaks. The specific requirements here—laboratory standards, contingency exercises, movement restrictions during outbreaks—address genuine coordination problems and externalities that private actors cannot solve alone. While some compliance costs exist, the alternative of deleting these provisions would leave Britain unable to contain disease outbreaks, resulting in far greater economic harm to farmers, rural communities, and consumers. The OIE manual references ensure standards are internationally recognised rather than arbitrarily stricter.