On 5 July 2018, the Government announced its Construction Sector Deal worth £420 million to transform the UK construction industry by improving productivity through greater investment in innovation and skills....
Will EVs overtake traditional internal combustion engines as our default mode of transportation? Recent data suggests so and perhaps very quickly if the current pace of adoption persists....
In the recent case of Patel v Folkstone Nursing Home Ltd, the Court of Appeal held that an employee had not been dismissed by his employer as his internal appeal against dismissal had been successful; thereby effectively erasing the earlier dismissal. The claimant had been dismissed for gross misconduct for falsifying records and sleeping whilst on duty. ...
Uber had its brakes slammed on last September after Transport for London (TFL) revoked its five-year licence for failure to report crime and to properly background check its drivers....
The ICO has announced that Facebook will be fined the maximum possible amount of £500,000 for its breaches of the Data Protection Act in relation to the Cambridge Analytica scandal, an amount that pales in comparison with the new fines introduced under GDPR. We previously blogged on the scandal here....
In Flowers v East of England Ambulance Trust, The Employment Appeal Tribunal has confirmed that voluntary overtime should be included when calculating holiday pay, if it is paid over a sufficient period of time. The ambulance crew members in this case did both mandatory but non-guaranteed overtime (shift over-run) and voluntary overtime, both of which were irregular. However, the voluntary overtime was not included in their holiday pay calculations. ...
In Ali v Torrosian and others (t/a Bedford Hill Family Practice) the EAT confirmed that when determining a claim for unfavourable treatment arising in consequence of a disability, Tribunals must consider whether the employer’s pursued legitimate aim could be achieved by less discriminatory means. Discrimination arising from disability (“unfavourable treatment”) was a new ground of claim created under the Equality Act 2010. ...
We are often asked by landowner clients whether there is any legal right to go on to a neighbour’s land to carry out repair and maintenance works where it is not possible to carry out such works from the landowner’s own property and there is no legal right in place allowing access to the neighbour’s land. If the Party Walls legislation does not apply to the site in question, the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992 (“the Act”) may be of assistance. ...
EU Directive Security of Networks & Information Systems (NIS) was a response from the EU to concerns about cyber security impacts on key infrastructure within the EU and the impacts that this would have on its citizens....
The Introduction of GDPR and the new Data Protection Act 2018 has already been the subject of many an article and discussion....
Immigration rules are to be relaxed by the Home Office today with the introduction of a new ‘UKRI Science, Research and Academia’ scheme which allows non-EEA researchers, scientists and academics to come to the UK for up to 2 years. The new scheme will be added to the Tier 5 (Temporary Worker – Government Authorised Exchange) visa route. ...
The NHS turned 70 yesterday. During that time, there have been huge scientific breakthroughs including the discovery of DNA structure, huge advances in transplant surgical techniques and the development of IVF – to name just a few!...
As we have previously blogged, if an employee fails to produce evidence of his right to work in the UK, it will not necessarily be fair for an employer to dismiss on the basis that it would be illegal to continue to employ the employee. However, dismissal in these circumstances can still be fair if the employer has a reasonable and genuinely held belief that it would be illegal to continue to employ them and has followed a fair process....
If an employee is dismissed for gross misconduct just short of 2 years service, s/he cannot add on statutory minimum notice so as to qualify to bring an unfair dismissal claim, found the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) in Lancaster & Duke Limited v Wileman....
We took another step forward yesterday in the move towards driverless transport. ...
In case you missed our seminar on 20 June 2018 in Reading with BESA (The Building Engineering Services Association), here is our summary of what was said, and the key take-away points from the event. ...
We are pleased about the completion of the first project funded by the Bangladesh UK Environmental Foundation (an initiative connected with Clarkslegal, via the Commonwealth Environmental Investment Platform – The CEIP), which we helped to set up with Bangladeshi diaspora community links in the UK. This is the installation of a water treatment plant, which allows 150 families to collect safe drinking water. It is anticipated that 300-400 families will benefit from this service in the future....
Hannah Mycock-Overell explains how good record-keeping practices will help if disputes later arise...
It will not have escaped organisations’ attention that data protection laws have undergone significant reforms lately. The GDPR came into force on 25 May 2018, however we also have a new Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) which is now in force, thanks to some last-minute prompt progress through Parliament....
The proposal for a ‘golden thread’ should be extended to all buildings, argues Hannah Mycock-Overell....