Data (Use and Access) Act 2025
New Legislation Enacted
By: Deborah Margolis, Senior Counsel and Hannah Drury, Associate
On June 19, 2025, the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (the Act) received Royal Assent. The Act amends the UK’s data protection laws and makes a number of changes, many of which will be relevant for employers, including in relation to automated decision making, individuals’ data rights, lawful processing of data and international data transfers. Although it is not a full-scale transformation, there are nonetheless some important changes of which employers should be aware. In addition, although the core principles and protections of EU GDPR (which were largely replicated in UK law at Brexit) remain, there are now some differences. Most of the changes are subject to secondary legislation and will go into effect over staggered implementation dates, although some changes are already in effect.
Supreme Court Ruling In for Women Scotland Ltd v. The Scottish Ministers
Precedential Decision by Judiciary or Regulatory Agency
By: Ben Rouse, Associate
In For Women Scotland Ltd v. The Scottish Ministers, The UK Supreme Court ruled that the terms “sex,” “man,” and “woman” in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a person’s biological sex (i.e., the sex of a person at birth). The court unanimously decided, having undertaken an exercise in statutory interpretation, that these terms do not extend to include the acquired sex or gender of trans men and trans women who have obtained a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) under applicable law. The court, however, noted, “the decision does not cause disadvantage to trans people, with or without a GRC,” and that trans men and trans women would have other protections under the legislation.
This is a significant decision, which may impact employers regarding certain workplace facilities or related policies.
New Restrictions on Use of Confidentiality Provisions Become Effective on October 1, 2025
New Regulation or Official Guidance
By: Jenny Allan, Associate
Effective October 1, 2025, Section 17 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 will void any contractual clause that restricts a “victim”— or someone who reasonably believes they are a victim—from disclosing information to specified individuals or organizations. These include police, qualified lawyers, victim support services, and others, for defined purposes. The list of permitted recipients may be expanded through regulations. The Act defines “victim” broadly to include anyone who has experienced physical, emotional, mental, or economic harm as a direct result of criminal conduct, including those who witnessed or otherwise directly experienced its effects. “Criminal conduct” refers to any offense, regardless of whether it has been reported or prosecuted.
The government has issued non statutory guidance to support understanding of these changes. Organizations that use confidentiality provisions or non-disclosure agreements may wish to review their templates and practices to ensure they align with the new requirements.
Upcoming Immigration Changes: Key Impacts for Employers
New Regulation or Official Guidance
By: Vanessa Ganguin, Partner (Consultant) and Ben Maitland, Associate (Consultant)
In May 2025, the UK Government released its Immigration White Paper outlining major reforms to the immigration system. The first wave of changes, set out in the Statement of Changes in Immigration Rules, will take effect on July 22, 2025, and will significantly impact hiring practices across sectors.
Key updates include:
- Social care providers will no longer be able to recruit care workers from overseas However, visa extensions and in-country switching will remain available until July 22, 2028, for eligible workers already in the UK
- The Skills Threshold for Skilled Worker visas will be raised, removing 111 occupations from eligibility unless the worker is already in the UK
- Immigration Salary List will be retained temporarily, alongside a new Temporary Shortage List (TSL)
- Sectors will be required to invest in domestic skills development to reduce reliance on the TSL in TSL-listed roles will no longer be allowed to bring dependents or receive salary and visa fee discounts
- The general salary threshold for Skilled Workers will increase from £38,700 to £41,700, in line with inflation
UK Government’s Call for Evidence on Equality Law Reform
Proposed Bill or Initiative
By: Georgia Fisher, Associate
Further to the UK Government’s commitment to a new draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill (Equality Bill) and the recent consultation on reforms to ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting, the government has now launched a wider call for evidence on proposed reforms to UK equality law. Responses to the call for evidence are likely to help shape the Equality Bill.
The call for evidence focuses on seeking views from stakeholders on the following key areas:
- Equal pay, including extending the equal pay program to ethnic minorities and disabled people, and improving equal pay enforcement
- Improving pay transparency, including considering some measures similar to those set out in the EU’s Pay Transparency Directive, such as ensuring salaries are provided to candidates pre-hire, and providing employees with information on their pay level and how their pay compares to those doing the same role or work of equal value
- Strengthening protections against combined discrimination
- Creating and maintaining workplaces and working conditions free from harassment
Policy is in the early stages of development, but this is a good indication of some of the reforms that may be coming in this area. Please review our articles on the plans to reform equality laws and improve pay transparency for more detail.
