The EC and the UK  have reached a political agreement on the UK’s participation in Horizon Europe, the EU’s research, and innovation programme, and Copernicus, the EU’s world-leading Earth observation programme.

This mutually agreed solution follows in-depth discussions between the EU and the UK and will be beneficial to both. It will allow the EU and UK to deepen their relationship in research, innovation, and space, bringing together research and space communities.

The agreement remains fully in line with the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement. The UK will be required to contribute financially to the EU budget and is subject to all the safeguards of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. Overall, it is estimated that the UK will contribute almost €2.6 billion per year on average for its participation to both Horizon Europe and the Copernicus component of the Space programme.

As of 1 January 2024, researchers and organisations in the UK will be able to participate in Horizon Europe on par with their counterparts in EU Member States and will have access to Horizon Europe funding. This will reinforce the opportunity to be part of a worldwide network of researchers and innovators aimed at tackling global challenges in climate, energy, mobility, digital, industry and space, health, and more.

More detail can be found here

The Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) along with the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) have recently published useful advice regarding avoiding misleading imagery in adverts.

The advice explains that marketing communications must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.

When assessing whether an ad is likely to mislead, the ASA will consider the entire ad, and the overall impression given in the ad. As well as any direct claims made, this includes the imagery used and the impression that imagery gives.

Images which give an inaccurate impression about the product consumers will receive, for example, by featuring the wrong product, including extras, or by exaggerating the quality or size of the product, are likely to mislead.

Using a picture which suggests that the product comes with certain elements, such as showing a plate of food with stew, potatoes and rice, is likely to mislead if the customer will only receive the stew, unless the ad makes it explicitly clear that the potato and rice are charged separately.

Read the advice in full here

 

As part of the UK Government’s Smarter Regulation Programme, the Department for Business and Trade are now consulting on Improving Price Transparency and Product Information for Consumers

This consultation focuses on six key areas of consumer information transparency, with the aim of improving the quality and accessibility of information so consumers can make informed choices about the products they purchase:

• The display of pricing information (see pages 10 – 16 for proposals and consultation questions).
• Hidden fees and drip pricing (see pages 16 – 20 for proposals and consultation questions).
• Fake and misleading reviews (see pages 20 – 26 for proposals and consultation questions).
• Online platforms (see pages 26 – 28 for proposals and consultation questions).
• Protection from unfair trading – further issues (see pages 28 – 29 for proposals and consultation questions).
• Online interface orders (see pages 29 – 31 for proposals and consultation questions)

The consultation closes on Sunday 15 October 2023 and can be found here

Full details of how to respond can be found on page 40 of the document.

 

The Cabinet Office has recently published an evaluation report on “The Ecosystem of Trust 2023”.

The Ecosystem of Trust sits alongside the Border Target Operating Model (BTOM) and is a theoretical border model for ‘frictionless’ trade. This report is an evaluation of the pilots, which ran from October 2022 to March 2023.

The pilots tested whether the Ecosystem of Trust could be implemented across the public and private sector to reduce trade frictions and were based on the use of innovative technology capabilities, real time data and trusted relationships to provide border agencies with new ways to assure what moves across the border.

Government partnered with six industry consortia, made up of technology firms, traders, and logistics companies to test the model, which, together with border agencies, included tests of new ways of sharing data.

The pilots showed that industry can make a broader range of higher quality data available to the government than that available today which can be provided in various formats that adapt to border agencies’ needs.

This all suggests that supply-chain data can provide 80% of the minimum risking requirements for customs purposes and 60% of trade statistics requirements. Supply chain data improved frontline targeting teams’ confidence in their decision-making and analysis suggests it might be possible to decrease the time taken to make those decisions by 17%.

However, the pilots also showed that new models are not yet ready to replace traditional mechanisms of border control. The UK government cannot take full advantage of new data because industry has yet to be incentivised to develop the appropriate technical infrastructure to make it available in the right (machine readable) format at scale, and government has not yet adequately determined the most effective ways to use or collect it.

But most importantly, the pilots have shown that industry and government can collaborate quickly and usefully to unlock solutions and overcome interoperability issues around the use of data. There is an appetite on both sides to drive trade digitisation and facilitate the adoption of supply chain data into government for mutual benefit.

Read the report in full here

The UK Government has announced a comprehensive initiative to help achieve UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by boosting health security and improving health and wellbeing around the world.

Ambitious plans were revealed by the UK delegation at the United Nations General Assembly in New York and include investments of up to £103.5 million to develop affordable vaccines, £295 million for research and development into health products and treatments, £95 million for the Tackling Deadly Diseases in Africa Programme II and an additional £5 million for the TB Alliance.

Minister for International Development, Andrew Mitchell said:

“The UK is committed to reinvigorating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. The UK’s significant support for global health announced at the UN General Assembly this week will be truly transformational in creating more resilient and inclusive health systems worldwide”.

Health Minister Will Quince said:

“This investment in global health research is vital for saving lives – both at home and abroad. Vaccines, drugs, and diagnostics can help prevent outbreaks in the developing world, while also limiting spread and protecting populations at home.

This UK Vaccine Network investment will help deliver effective and accessible vaccines for populations threatened by infectious diseases and cements the UK’s status as a leader in global health research”.

You can read the announcement in full here