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On September 3, 2026, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published final revised guidance on its assessment of merger efficiencies. The new guidance signals a significant shift toward greater openness to efficiency-based arguments from merging parties, a development driven by a government mandate to promote economic growth. While the core analytical framework remains, the revisions create a more favorable environment for deal-making by expanding on the types of efficiencies the CMA will consider, allowing more flexibility on the timeline for their realization, and clarifying evidentiary standards. The guidance notably states that the CMA will accept evidence generated after a merger is contemplated and assures parties that submitting an efficiencies defense does not concede the existence of a substantial lessening of competition. For sophisticated counsel, this marks a critical change in regulatory posture. Companies and their advisors should consider preparing and presenting efficiency claims earlier in the UK merger review process and explore the newly clarified role

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The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is intensifying its fight against bid-rigging in public procurement, proposing to use data analytics to scrutinize Ministry of Defence (MoD) contracts. The initiative reflects the CMA's view that tackling collusion is a key priority, especially within the UK's £400 billion public purchasing market. The agency plans to expand the use of its Bid Rigging Intelligence Tool (BRIT) to detect suspicious patterns, and it is calling for the mandatory, centralized collection of bid-level data—including from losing bidders—to make this screening effective. For government contractors, particularly in the defense sector, this signals a significant increase in enforcement risk. The consequences for cartel conduct are severe, ranging from heavy fines and director disqualifications to potential criminal prosecution and, crucially, mandatory debarment from future public contracts under the new Procurement Act 2023. Counsel should advise clients in this space to anticipate heightened scrutiny and ensure their bidding practices and compliance programs ar

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The UK government has accelerated the timetable for new consumer subscription contract rules under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA), with an effective date now set for January 2027. The regime targets 'subscription traps' by imposing stricter transparency and cancellation obligations on businesses serving UK consumers, regardless of where the business is based. Key requirements include providing prescribed information upfront, sending renewal reminders, and offering a new 14-day cooling-off period after a free trial converts to a paid subscription or when a contract renews for 12 months or more. The rules also mandate a straightforward online cancellation process. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will enforce the regime and can impose fines of up to 10% of a company's global annual turnover for non-compliance. Affected businesses should begin auditing their consumer journeys, disclosure language, and cancellation workflows to prepare for the changes, and watch for forthcoming implementation guidance from the CMA.

On 17 July 2026, the UK Department for Business and Trade opened a consultation proposing wide-ranging reforms to three pillars of the competition landscape. For collective actions before the Competition Appeal Tribunal, certification would shift from a relative to an absolute suitability test, filing fees tied to claim value would be introduced, costs budgets would become mandatory, and damages-based funding agreements would be permitted for the first time in opt-out cases. The CAT would gain new mediation powers, and Type A leniency applicants would receive civil immunity from damages claims—a potentially decisive shift in cartel strategy. On regulatory appeals, the government proposes transferring jurisdiction from the CMA to the CAT, harmonising appeal standards across Ofwat, CAA, Ofcom and other sector regulators, and applying judicial review principles uniformly. On enforcement, the CMA would gain discretion over its decision-making structure, confidentiality handling and access-to-file rules, with a new £300,000 penalty cap for undertakings lacking representative turnover. Aff

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Rising parallel enforcement by the FTC, DOJ, European Commission, and UK CMA is forcing merging parties to negotiate overlapping but inconsistent remedies—divestiture buyers, asset scopes, and timing often diverge by jurisdiction. Recent matters show agencies rarely defer to one another's analyses, increasing the risk that a remedy accepted in one forum triggers non-compliance in another. Practitioners recommend early pre-clearance mapping of likely remedy demands, harmonized purchaser searches, and explicit carve-outs in consent decrees to preserve flexibility. In-house counsel should build cross-border remedy playbooks before signing, identify jurisdiction-specific deal-breakers, and engage local counsel in parallel to stress-test divestiture commitments against each agency's stated preferences and recent precedent.