The Regulations amended Schedule 4 of the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 to replace the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority with the Fair Work Agency as a relevant public authority with specific investigatory powers.

These Regulations, made by the Secretary of State under the powers granted by the Employment Rights Act 2025, amend the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 to ensure that the Fair Work Agency, which is taking over the functions of the abolished Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA), retains the necessary authority to access communications data for enforcement purposes.

The amendment specifically updates the list of relevant public authorities in Schedule 4 of the 2016 Act, substituting the GLAA's designation with that of the Fair Work Agency within the Department for Business and Trade.

The Order modified Section 4A of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 to assimilate income tax and social security contribution law related to umbrella companies and deemed employment.

This Statutory Instrument, made by HM Treasury with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, modifies section 4A of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 to align social security contribution rules with recent changes made to income tax legislation by the Finance Act 2026 concerning workers supplied through service companies and umbrella companies.

The Order primarily empowers the Treasury to introduce regulations holding certain persons jointly and severally liable with umbrella companies for contributions, and to treat payments made under deemed employment scenarios with 'purported umbrella companies' as earnings for contributions purposes.

The Order modified Section 4A of the NI Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 to align contribution liability with income tax rules related to worker supply and umbrella company arrangements.

This Statutory Instrument, made by the Treasury with the concurrence of the Department for Communities, modifies Section 4A of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992.

The primary purpose is to assimilate the law on social security contributions with changes made to income tax law by the Finance Act 2026, particularly regarding earnings paid to workers supplied by service companies or channeled through umbrella companies.

The Order inserts powers allowing regulations to make individuals jointly and severally liable alongside umbrella companies for contributions, define how payments received under deemed employment rules (ITEPA 2003 section 61Z1) are treated as earnings, and assign the purported umbrella company as the secondary contributor for those payments.

The Regulations amend 2001 Social Security Contribution rules to disregard earnings related to specific tax-exempt employee accommodation/supplies and flu vaccinations from contribution calculations starting April 6, 2026.

These Regulations, made by the Treasury with concurrence from the Secretary of State and the Department for Communities, amend the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001 to specify payments that must be disregarded when calculating earnings for the purpose of earnings-related social security contributions.

Specifically, Regulation 2 introduces exemptions for amounts shielded from income tax under sections 316ZA (accommodation, supplies, and services used in employment duties) and 320D (flu vaccinations) of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003, bringing the contributions framework into alignment with the recent tax legislation changes and coming into force on April 6, 2026.

The Order imposed a levy on construction industry employers for defined levy periods between 2026 and 2028, detailing assessment methods, payment terms, and appeal rights for the Construction Industry Training Board.

The Industrial Training Levy (Construction Industry Training Board) Order 2026 establishes a mandatory levy scheme to fund the expenses of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), effective from March 25, 2026, and applicable across England, Wales, and Scotland.

It outlines the specific levy periods (three periods spanning from the commencement date through to March 2028), defines criteria for determining which employers ('construction establishments') are liable based on their engagement duration and financial activities (emoluments and contract payments over defined 'base periods'), and sets out calculation rates (0.35% of emoluments and 1.25% of relevant contract payments).

The Order also details exemptions for organizations below a £150,000 threshold, procedures for assessment notices, payment deadlines, mechanisms for assessment withdrawal or amendment, and the process and time limits for employers to appeal assessments.

The Regulations applied specified sections of PACE, with modifications, to enforcement officers investigating labour market offences in England and Wales, and revoked the previous 2017 rules.

These Regulations apply selected provisions of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE)—which typically govern police officers—to enforcement officers appointed under the Employment Rights Act 2025 when they investigate 'labour market offences' across England and Wales, replacing previous 2017 regulations and detailing numerous specific modifications to ensure PACE powers like stop and search, entry, seizure of evidence, and arrest procedures operate correctly within the context of these specialist investigators, including mandatory transfer of arrested persons and seized material to the police upon custody commencement.

The Regulations amended multiple statutory instruments, including those concerning employment agencies, gangmaster licensing appeals, and proceeds of crime investigations, to replace references to the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority with the Secretary of State, following provisions in the Employment Rights Act 2025.

These Regulations, operating under the powers granted by the Employment Rights Act 2025, make necessary consequential amendments to various pieces of secondary legislation to align them with the new enforcement structure established by the 2025 Act, chiefly involving the transfer of functions previously held by the now-abolished Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) to the Secretary of State and integrating new enforcement officers into regulatory and financial investigation frameworks.

The Order specifies fixed and variable fee increases for licences under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 and revokes the 2024 Fees Order, effective April 6, 2026.

This Statutory Instrument, made by the Secretary of State under the powers conferred by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, sets the new fees applicable for licence holders involved in scientific procedures using animals, effective from 6th April 2026 across England, Wales, and Scotland; specifically, it revokes the 2024 Fees Order and establishes a revised fee structure composed of a fixed element (£1168) and a variable element (£382 per relevant personal licence holder).