As the summer draws to a close, and we pack away our beachwear for another year, political and business minds will inevitably return to the pressing question of Brexit and what the UK's exit is going to look like.
Whilst recent economic indicators suggest that the UK is weathering the fall out from Brexit better than expected, there is still much to do in order to provide R&C businesses with the certainty required to make long term investment decisions. With this in mind, we have a number of articles focussing on what Brexit means for R&C businesses including the impact on rules offering protected status to certain products (which could allow such horrors as French scotch or English champagne) and its implications for sugar and those businesses currently reliant on (or constrained by) the C.A.P. Clearly, Brexit is going to be central to all our thinking for some time to come and we have a range of briefing notes, horizon scanners and know how available to you on our Brexit Box.
Away from Brexit, the R&C world keeps turning, and we have further articles on the impact of environmental regulations on supply chains, as well as illegal working on the back of the highly publicised arrests at Byron Burger. Not to mention all our upcoming events.
We hope you enjoy our newsletter. As always, if there are any topics that you would be interested in being covered in future editions of this newsletter, please get in touch and let us know.
This month's articles...
11 weeks on from the EU Referendum and we continue to operate in a Brexit-induced state of flux. Here some of our in-house specialists outline some more areas potentially impacted by our departure from the EU.
Protected EU Geographical Indications
How could Brexit impact on our food and drink manufacturing, as protected statuses come under threat?
Could Brexit halt the sugar levy?
Manufacturers and industry bodies have raised concerns that the sugar levy will impose an undue burden on an industry already fragile post-Brexit. Will their concerns be heard?
Could IP law become and administrative headache?
Intellectual property law in the EU has become increasingly harmonised over time, making it easier to trade across EU member states. Brexit would raise a host of technical questions about what would happen to those laws.
Brexit and Dispute Resolution
What should business be thinking about now in terms of immediate implications for contract terms from a dispute perspective.
Being environmentally savvy
The potential consequences of ignoring environmental regulation have never been bigger, but a surprising number of companies don’t fully understand the regulatory framework in which they operate.
Read our article to understand how you can ensure compliance
Events
Food Safety breakfast seminar
Wednesday 14 September (Manchester) and Thursday 15 September (London) 8.30 – 10.30am
You can view the event details here, for further information or to register for this event, please contact Angela Dunbar.
Gender Pay Gap Reporting
Thursday 15 September (Leeds) 8.30-10.30am
A seminar looking at the new rules and how to analyse your data. For further information or to register for this event, please contact Renee Lofthouse or Amanda Steadman.
Retail & Consumer Roundtables
Wednesday 12 October (London) 2.00-6.00pm
A roundtable session for individuals from the retail and consumer lending and debt advisory community. Our in-house experts will present and discuss key themes in the sector, notably block chain, big data, cyber-security and sanctions. For further information or to register for this event, please contact Holly-Beth Billson.
Crisis Simulation: Product Recall
Thursday 13 October (Manchester) 8.30am – 12pm
The crisis simulation is built around a bespoke online simulation tool allowing participants to experience the challenges posed by a live crisis across a variety of channels: mainstream media (inc. dealing with press enquiries and giving broadcast interviews), digital and social media, stakeholder engagement, employee comms and shareholder relations. For more information please contact Laura Krnjulac or Kimberley Valentine.
In case you missed it...
- Illegal working has always been an important issue for retail and hospitality sector employers. However, following last month's highly publicised arrests of illegal workers at Byron Burger (following orchestrated Home Office raids on branches of the upmarket hamburger chain), the introduction via the Immigration Act 2016 of new immigration offences and expanded powers for the Home Office to tackle illegal working (and of course with the uncertainties regarding Brexit on the horizon) this issue has moved even further up the agenda. Read more in our article here.
- The recent Court of Appeal ruling in Blue Bio Pharmaceuticals Ltd & Abba Pharma Ltd v Secretary of State for Health may have significant implications for manufacturers and retailers of glucosamine-containing food supplements, and consumers using them to relieve osteoarthritis. It may also be of wider application to the classification of other products under the medicinal products regime, particularly other "borderline medicinal products" used by consumers to manage health issues without recourse to conventional medicine. Please see our e-alert on the case here.
- In this issue of Competitive Edge, we consider the provisional remedies decision in the CMA's retail banking investigation; competition law developments in payment cards and a round up of other recent trends.
Our Retail Week article
We are exclusive legal contributors to the sector's most coveted publication.
In this month's article we look at how drones are set to revolutionise UK businesses' retail delivery landscape, with The Civil Aviation Authority agreeing to somewhat relax legislation for Amazon's new test flights, demonstrating a confidence in the future use of drones.
International spotlight
Huge thanks to our colleagues at Noerr, who have contributed content from across Romania, Hungary and Poland and to August & Debouzy who have provided an article from France.
Noerr
- Romania: Case Study: Competition Council approach on unfair competition & commercial practices in Romania
- Hungary: Senior executive liability
- Poland: New regulation on promoting the availability of ADR for consumers in Poland
August & Debouzy
One to watch...
Retailers take action on "toxic" beads
Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Tesco are removing microbeads from all their own label products amid growing concerns over the damage they cause to the environment, with other retailers looking to follow suit. Others, such as the Co-op, Lush and Neal's Yard say they have never used the tiny plastic beads in their scrubs, gels and toothpastes. The government pledges an outright ban will be in place by 2017. Full story here.
