Trade Legislation
Laws governing international trade, customs procedures, trade agreements, and commercial relations.
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.
These Regulations implement the necessary domestic legislative changes in the United Kingdom to give effect to the obligations arising from the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), modifying various areas of UK law including those related to goods, services, intellectual property, and customs procedures to align with the terms of international treaty.
These Regulations establish the comprehensive statutory framework governing vaping products under the new excise duty regime enacted by the Finance Act 2026, detailing mandatory approval requirements for production and storage, specifying procedures for volume measurement and retail packaging, setting out rules for the payment of duty, and establishing the critical framework around the use, scanning, activation, and management of mandatory duty stamps, including transitional arrangements and modifications to existing excise legislation concerning movement and drawback.
The Procurement Act 2023 (Specified International Agreements and Saving Provision) (Amendment) Regulations 2025
These Regulations amend the Procurement Act 2023 to incorporate the procurement obligations stemming from two international agreements: the Strategic Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with Kazakhstan and the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with Iraq.
The amendments specify these treaties as 'specified international agreements' under Schedule 9 of the 2023 Act, granting treaty state suppliers reciprocal treatment under certain conditions, excluding procurements regulated by the Welsh Ministers.
Furthermore, the instrument modifies the 2024 Commencement and Saving Provisions Regulations to ensure consistency, allowing the procurement chapters of these new agreements to apply to procurements still governed by the retained 2015 and 2016 procurement legislation, with transitional rules protecting procurements already underway.
The Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000 (Estimates and Accounts) (Amendment) Order 2025
This Order, made by HM Treasury under the Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000, revises the list of designated central government bodies for the purpose of calculating supply estimates and resource accounts for the financial year ending March 31, 2026.
Specifically, it substitutes the entire Schedule of the principal Order (The Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000 (Estimates and Accounts) Order 2025) with an updated list organized by government department, adding, renaming, or removing various public sector bodies.
These Regulations, made by the Treasury and the Secretary of State under the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018, introduce various amendments to UK customs regulations, primarily focused on updating the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) origin rules and linked preferential arrangements, effective January 1, 2026.
Key changes involve differentiating origin rules for Enhanced Preference (EP) and Standard Preference (SP) countries, updating the criteria for 'economically vulnerable countries,' reclassifying Vanuatu from a Least Developed Country (LDC) to an 'other eligible developing country,' and updating the version numbers of several foundational customs reference documents.
The Trade Act 2021 (Power to Implement International Trade Agreements) (Extension to Expiry) Regulations 2025
The Secretary of State enacted these Regulations using the power granted by the Trade Act 2021 to extend the deadline for making regulations necessary to implement international trade agreements to which the UK is a signatory.
Specifically, the five-year period during which this regulation-making power can be used is extended, meaning no regulations under section 2(1) of the Act can be made after the end of ten years beginning with IP completion day.
Statutory approval from both Houses of Parliament preceded the coming into force of these regulations on December 30th, 2025, and they apply across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
These Regulations amend the 2020 EU Exit Customs Tariff Regulations by updating the official version of the United Kingdom Tariff document, effective 15th December 2025.
The amendment specifically increases the import duty rate for specific codes of husked basmati rice from 0% to £25 per 1000kg and rectifies a previous error by restoring the 14% duty rate for jams, fruit jellies, and related products under heading code 2007 99 93.