Purpose
This update summarises key legal developments listed in the July 2026 legal update. It highlights changes affecting Quality, Environment, Information Security, Health & Safety and other compliance obligations, supporting organisations in identifying new and emerging duties for legal registers, compliance evaluations and management system review.
Upcoming legislation and policy developments
These measures are progressing, under development, or not yet fully commenced.
Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information Systems) Bill (July update)
Status: Bill progressing through Parliament as at July 2026
Proposes major reform of the Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018, including wider scope for digital infrastructure, managed service providers, data centres and critical suppliers. It also strengthens cyber governance, incident reporting, supply-chain assurance, operational resilience and regulatory enforcement powers.
Critical Third Parties (Designation) Regulations 2026
Status: Regulatory framework under development
Expected to support the designation and oversight of critical third parties whose services are material to the resilience of regulated firms or essential services. The update highlights increased focus on outsourced, technology-dependent and systemically important services.
National Security (State Threats) Bill (July Update)
Status: Bill progressing through Parliament as at July 2026
Intended to strengthen the UK framework for hostile state activity, espionage, interference and related security threats. The update may be relevant to organisations handling sensitive information, strategic assets, government work, defence activity, infrastructure or advanced technology exposure.
Cyber Resilience Pledge, Government announcement
Status: Government announcement, not a statutory commencement instrument
Introduces a voluntary cyber resilience initiative encouraging organisations to adopt practical cyber resilience commitments, improve baseline cyber hygiene, support national cyber security objectives and align with wider cyber resilience policy.
Commercial Payments Bill (July Update)
Status: Bill progressing through Parliament as at July 2026
Proposes major reforms to late commercial payment practices, including a proposed 60-day maximum payment term, mandatory statutory interest on late payments, restrictions on construction retentions and expanded powers for the Small Business Commissioner.
REACH (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026
Status: Draft affirmative procedure
Would amend UK REACH by extending deadlines for registration compliance checks and amending post-IP completion transitional periods while the Alternative Transitional Registration model is developed.
New legislation and legal updates
These legal texts were made, published, commenced, corrected or included as July 2026 legal updates. Some apply immediately, while others have phased or future commencement dates.
Environmental Permitting (Waste Controlling or Transporting) and Relevant Functions of Primary Authorities (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2026
Made: 22 July 2026
Commencement: Most provisions come into force 12 months after the Regulations are made
Brings waste carriers, brokers and dealers in England into the environmental permitting regime, replacing the previous registration model with a more controlled permitting framework. It creates regulated waste controlling, waste transporting and combined activities, with stronger Environment Agency compliance, suspension and revocation powers.
Environmental Offences (Fixed Penalties) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Updates the fixed penalty framework for specified environmental offences in England, supporting local authority enforcement and deterrence of environmental non-compliance, including littering, waste-related and local environmental offences.
Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (Transitory Provision) Regulations 2026
Made: 14 July 2026
Commencement: 1 January 2027, with transitional accounting, registration, return and payment dates during 2027 and early 2028
Establishes transitional arrangements for the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, modifying registration, accounting, payment and return deadlines during the early implementation period. It is relevant to importers of CBAM goods, including iron, steel, aluminium, cement, fertiliser and hydrogen.
Carbon Budget Order 2026
Status: Included in the July update as a June 2026 legislative update
Establishes the UK’s Seventh Carbon Budget under the Climate Change Act 2008, setting a legally binding emissions limit and supporting the UK’s net zero pathway.
Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Continues the phased implementation of the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 by bringing further provisions into force and providing transitional arrangements for existing planning and infrastructure processes.
Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends arrangements for the discharge of local planning authority functions in England, supporting more flexible allocation of planning functions and administrative decision-making.
Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) Order 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Order
Amends permitted development rights in England, updating the circumstances in which development may proceed without a full planning application and potentially introducing new limitations, prior approval requirements or procedural safeguards.
Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 and Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations 2002 (Amendment) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends product and electricity safety requirements relating to plugs, sockets and electricity safety, supporting updated technical standards and continuity within the electrical safety framework.
Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2026, correction slip
Publication: Correction slip issued in July 2026
Clarifies drafting or typographical issues in the ESOS amendment legislation without changing the underlying policy intent. Organisations subject to ESOS should ensure legal registers and compliance documents reference the corrected version where applicable.
Energy Act 2023 (Commencement No. 5, Saving Provisions) Regulations 2026
Commencement: Further provisions commence on the dates specified in the Regulations
Brings further Energy Act 2023 provisions into force and includes saving provisions to support continuity during implementation of energy market and infrastructure reforms.
Offshore (Oil and Gas) Installation and Pipeline Abandonment Charges (Revocation) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Revokes previous charging provisions relating to offshore oil and gas installation and pipeline abandonment, simplifying or replacing existing cost recovery arrangements.
Nuclear Safeguards (EU Exit and Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends the UK nuclear safeguards and fees framework, supporting continued operation of domestic nuclear safeguards following EU exit and regulatory oversight by the Office for Nuclear Regulation.
Marine Licensing (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment ect.) Order 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Order
Amends aspects of the marine licensing framework, supporting clearer administration of marine consent, exemption or enforcement arrangements.
Supply of Machinery (Safety) (Amendment ect.) and the EU Machinery Regulation (Enforcement etc. in Northern Ireland) Regulations 2026
Made: 22 July 2026
Commencement: 20 January 2027
Updates the machinery safety framework by amending the Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008 for Great Britain and establishing enforcement arrangements for the EU Machinery Regulation in Northern Ireland.
Industrial Training Levy (Engineering Construction Industry Training Board) Order 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Order
Sets levy arrangements for employers within scope of the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board, supporting skills, training and workforce development in the engineering construction sector.
Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Updates the Housing Health and Safety Rating System framework used to assess hazards in residential premises, supporting improved housing standards and enforcement consistency.
Building Safety (Responsible Actors Scheme and Prohibitions) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends the Responsible Actors Scheme framework, strengthening obligations and restrictions for developers responsible for remediation of life-critical fire safety defects.
Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends requirements applying to regulated health and social care activities, supporting the continued development of the CQC-regulated care framework.
Procurement (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends aspects of the UK procurement framework, supporting implementation and refinement of the Procurement Act 2023 regime, including procedural, threshold, transparency or technical procurement requirements.
Automated Vehicles Act 2024 (Commencement No. 3) Regulations 2026
Commencement: Further provisions commence on the dates specified in the Regulations
Brings further provisions of the Automated Vehicles Act 2024 into force, supporting the phased implementation of the UK framework for authorised automated vehicles.
Automated Vehicles (Marketing Restrictions) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Establishes restrictions on how automated vehicle capabilities may be marketed, helping prevent misleading claims about vehicle automation and driver responsibilities.
Road User Charging Schemes (Penalty Charges, Adjudication and Enforcement) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends the framework for penalty charges, adjudication and enforcement under road user charging schemes in England.
Employment Rights Act 2025 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Continues the staged implementation of the Employment Rights Act 2025 by bringing further provisions into force and providing transitional and saving arrangements.
Employment Tribunal (Extension of Time Limits) (Miscellaneous s and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Regulations
Amends time limits for specified Employment Tribunal claims and provides transitional rules governing when the revised limits apply.
Employment Tribunals Extension of Jurisdiction (England and Wales) (Amendment) Order 2026
Commencement: In accordance with the Order
Amends the Employment Tribunals Extension of Jurisdiction framework, which allows certain contractual claims to be heard by employment tribunals in England and Wales.
Significant amendments
The following matters represent substantive changes or notable compliance developments arising from the July 2026 update.
- Expansion of cyber resilience expectations through the progressing NIS reform Bill, critical third-party oversight proposals, state threats legislation and the Government’s Cyber Resilience Pledge. [July 2026...gal Update | PDF]
- Movement from waste carrier, broker and dealer registration towards an environmental permitting model in England, with stronger Environment Agency control and enforcement powers.
- Continued development of environmental enforcement through amended fixed penalty arrangements for specified environmental offences in England.
- Further UK REACH transitional reform, including extensions to compliance check deadlines and post-IP completion transitional periods.
- Introduction of transitional arrangements for the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism ahead of commencement on 1 January 2027.
- Continued phased implementation of planning and infrastructure reform, including planning authority functions, permitted development rights and transitional provisions.
- Updates to energy, climate and net zero frameworks through the Carbon Budget Order, Energy Act commencement regulations and ESOS correction slip.
- Amendments to electrical product safety, machinery safety and automated vehicle frameworks, including marketing restrictions for automated vehicle capabilities.
- Strengthening of building, housing and residential safety frameworks through amendments to the Responsible Actors Scheme and Housing Health and Safety Rating System.
- Further employment law implementation, including Employment Rights Act commencement provisions, extended Employment Tribunal time limits and updates to tribunal jurisdiction.
- Procurement framework refinement through amendments linked to the Procurement Act 2023 regime.
- Sector-specific compliance changes affecting offshore oil and gas decommissioning charges, nuclear safeguards, marine licensing, engineering construction training levy arrangements, and health and social care regulated activities.
