Switched the inflation indexing for renewable electricity buy-out prices and mutualisation caps from RPI to CPI effective April 2026.

This Order amends the Renewables Obligation Order 2015 to change the inflation index used for adjusting the buy-out price and the mutualisation cap for electricity suppliers in England and Wales.

It replaces the Retail Prices Index (RPI) with the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) for all obligation periods starting on or after 1 April 2026.

These changes apply to all licensed electricity suppliers who must either produce Renewables Obligation Certificates (ROCs) or make cash buy-out payments to the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority (Ofgem).

Increased the statutory compensation payments for workers with dust-related diseases and their dependants by 3.8% starting April 2026.

These Regulations increase the lump sum compensation amounts payable to individuals suffering from certain dust-related diseases, such as pneumoconiosis and diffuse mesothelioma, or to their dependants.

They apply to cases in England, Wales, and Scotland where a person first meets the entitlement conditions on or after 1 April 2026.

The instrument raises specific statutory payment limits and replaces the payment tables in the 1988 Regulations to reflect a 3.8% increase across all categories of age and disability percentage.

The Regulations enacted the second set of commencement provisions for the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act 2025 on April 1st, 2026, activating sections related to public sector fraud investigation, non-benefit payment enforcement, and associated amendments to social security law.

These Regulations bring into force the second tranche of provisions from the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act 2025 starting on 1st April 2026, specifically activating sections establishing new powers for investigating and recovering losses from fraud against public authorities outside of tax and social security, introducing criminal offences and administrative penalties for non-benefit payment fraud, and extending relevant Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 powers to authorized investigators.

The instrument extended the specified period and critical procedural deadlines for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme by nine months, concluding the main obligation period on December 31st, 2026.

This Statutory Instrument, made on March 25th, 2026, amends the preceding Electricity and Gas (Energy Company Obligation) Order 2022 by extending the overall period of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme by nine months, shifting the end date for the home-heating cost reduction target from March 31st, 2026, to December 31st, 2026.

The Order also adjusts several associated deadlines for remaining procedural steps, applications, and measure approvals under the ECO scheme across England, Wales, and Scotland, ensuring consistency with the newly defined final date.

Amended the Procurement Regulations 2024, PSR Regulations 2023, and Transitional and Saving Provisions Regulations 2024 concerning central digital platform usage, payment transparency, supplier identification, and contract termination based on national security grounds.

These Regulations amend several existing statutory instruments governing UK public procurement, primarily focused on refining the operation of the central digital platform, enhancing transparency requirements for contract payments, and modifying rules for below-threshold tenders.

Key changes include detailing payment information disclosure, allowing alternative publication methods when the central platform is down, creating mechanisms to reserve contracts for SMEs and value-driven NGOs, streamlining supplier identification requirements for smaller contracts, and introducing ministerial notification requirements before terminating specific healthcare contracts on national security grounds.

Extended the bailiff notice period to 14 days and increased the fees recoverable during the enforcement process.

These regulations amend the procedures for enforcement agents taking control of goods in England and Wales to increase debtor protections and adjust recovery fees.

They direct that the standard notice period given to a debtor before goods are seized must increase from 7 to 14 days, and allow for an extension to 28 days if a debt advice provider makes a request on the debtor's behalf.

The measure also restricts High Court enforcement agents from escalating to certain fee stages if they have not established contact, while simultaneously raising the fixed fees and value thresholds for enforcement actions.

These rules apply to enforcement agents, debt advice providers, and individual and business debtors, except those with non-eligible business debts.

Exempted certain technology transfer agreements from the UK's Chapter I prohibition on anti-competitive practices, effective from May 2026.

This Order establishes a block exemption from the Chapter I prohibition of the Competition Act 1998 for specific technology transfer agreements involving the licensing or assignment of technology rights such as patents, know-how, and software copyright.

It directs that such agreements are exempt from competition law provided they meet specific market share thresholds and do not contain restricted anti-competitive clauses.

The Order applies to licensors and licensees operating in the United Kingdom and empowers the Competition and Markets Authority to withdraw the exemption in individual cases where an agreement is found to be anti-competitive.

The appointed day for the commencement of Finance Act 2021 penalties for failures by digitally obligated persons regarding income tax and capital gains tax returns and payments was set to 1st April 2026.

These Regulations, made by HM Treasury, appoint 1st April 2026 as the commencement date for specific penalty provisions within Schedules 24, 25, 26, and 27 of the Finance Act 2021 concerning income tax and capital gains tax.

The appointed day applies these penalties—covering failures to make returns, deliberate withholding of information, and failure to pay tax—specifically to 'digitally obligated persons' concerning tax matters related to the 2026-27 tax year and beyond, excluding trustees and partnerships.