In brief On 22 July 2025, the UK Cabinet Office made three major announcements relating to the National Security and Investment Act (“NSI Act”), which embodies the UK’s foreign direct investment (“FDI”) screening process. Firstly, the UK Government confirmed its intention to create exemptions to the NSI Act regime for certain types of internal reorganisations. Secondly, it launched a planned consultation on a raft of proposed changes to the notifiable sectors, including the introduction of…
On 20 May 2024, the UK Government issued updated guidance on the use of powers under the National Security and Investment Act (“NSI Act”). As noted in our blog post dated 26 April 2024, this updated guidance forms part of the UK Government’s response to the call for evidence that it launched in December 2023 asking for stakeholder feedback on a number of areas of potential change to the NSI Act. The updates to the…
Mandatory, CFIUS-style screening system in place for transactions in 17 industry sectors On 11 November 2020, the UK Government introduced the long-anticipated National Security & Investment Bill before Parliament. The new law will significantly expand the Government’s existing powers to review the national security implications of transactions and has been timed to coincide with the end of the Brexit Transition Period. The reforms follow concerns globally about foreign control of national businesses active in sensitive…