Introduction
The National Security and Investment Bill (“NSI Bill”) is due to complete its passage through Parliament in May 2021 and it is anticipated it will receive Royal Assent soon after. A number of necessary statutory orders will then be made under the new Act and the legislation is due to enter into force by the end of the year (2021).
The NSI Bill seeks to establish a new, standalone statutory regime to allow the UK Government to scrutinise and intervene in certain acquisitions and investments for the purposes of protecting national security (NSI Regime). It will replace the current powers of the UK Government to intervene on the grounds of national security under the Enterprise Act 2002.
It seems we’ll never find out exactly what Boris Johnson meant when he said that no action [was] off the table to prevent six of England’s largest football clubs from joining the much-maligned European Super League; all six have pulled out. But the speed and enthusiasm with which the government condemned the new league was something to behold. Within hours of the league’s big reveal, everyone from the future king to the
X-Factor 2004 winner had moved to condemn it, while Oliver Dowden, the Secretary of State for digital, culture, media and sport, solemnly lamented that he was left with “no choice but to formally trigger… a fan-led review of football”. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK’s competition regulator, said it was “carefully considering” competition concerns.
Explainer: Why has the UK intervened in Nvidia’s $40bn Arm merger?
Nvidia founder and boss Jensen Huang (Getty Images)
Ever since it was announced in September last year, Nvidia’s proposed $40bn (£30bn) takeover of British chipmaker Arm has proved controversial.
Critics including rival tech firms and former Arm executives were quick to hit out at the deal, warning of a negative impact for Britain and the semiconductor industry more widely.
Yesterday the government made a rare intervention, ordering an investigation into the planned tie-up. But what are the concerns and what does it mean for the UK’s M&A market?
The government’s decision to water down new foreign investment rules designed to protect national security casts serious doubt about its resolve to keep China out of the most sensitive parts of the British economy. Raising the threshold above which an overseas stake must be examined from 15 per cent to 25 per cent will sharply reduce the number of deals facing scrutiny.
The amendment to the National Security and Investment Bill, now wending its way through parliament, was presented by business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng as necessary to show Britain is still ‘open for business’. It follows intense lobbying by the Confederation of British Industry, which fears the new rules will deprive industry of investment just as it is emerging battered and bruised from the Covid pandemic.
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