Today, the Prime Minister set out the Government’s 10 Point Plan on a Green Industrial Revolution. Following the PMs announcement, a policy document has been published with further details included, which can be found here à 10_POINT_PLAN_BOOKLET

The Department for Transport have also issued the following note:

As part of the plan, the Government has announced additional funding and support for decarbonising the aviation sector. Industry has been clear on the importance of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) and the Government has announced support for the 2021/2022 financial year, covering plant deployment and fuel testing, as well as our intentions to consult on demand-side policy to drive SAF uptake. This includes

• A £15m competition to support the production of SAF in the UK, building on the success of the Future Fuels for Freight and Flight Competition
• £3m to establish a SAF clearing (testing) house
• Announcing plans to consult on a SAF blending mandate.

Aerospace technology also has a critical role and we will continue to support R&D in this area through the work of the Aerospace Technology Institute and the funding in place until 2026. There is also a lot of interest in the technological revolution that will occur over the next decade as we develop zero emission aircraft. To support this transition, we will allocate £3m for R&D into the infrastructure required for zero emission aircraft operation. We are keen to work with industry to ensure that the funding available for the 2021/22 financial year contributes to our ambitions as effectively as possible. The Jet Zero Council will continue to play an important role in bringing together industry to deliver these ambitions and we hope to announce a date for the next meeting shortly.

The Government is introducing the National Security and Investment Bill, which will require companies operating in “sensitive” sectors to seek authorisation for specific types of transactions. Part of this will be a voluntary notification system whereby parties voluntarily notify Government if there are any national security concerns, but the other part of the regime will be mandatory.

The Government is consulting on its proposed definitions for the types of entity within each sector that could come under the Bill’s mandatory regime. Responses to the consultation will be used to refine the definitions so they provide enough clarity to allow parties to self-assess whether they need to notify. The Government is also seeking views on whether the definitions are proportionate in scope.

The sectors specifically mentioned are: Advanced Materials, Advanced Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Civil Nuclear, Communications, Computing Hardware, Critical Suppliers to Government, Critical Suppliers to the Emergency Services, Cryptographic Authentication, Data Infrastructure, Defence, Energy, Engineering Biology, Military and Dual Use, Quantum Technologies, Satellite and Space Technologies and Transport. There is a question set (both general and sector-specific) within the consultation (pg. 13-15) that you may wish to review.

ADS will be responding to the consultation, and would appreciate industry views on the proposed mandatory notification regime. Please direct your comments to ADS Defence and Security Policy Advisors, Andy and Nathan (andy.johnston@adsgroup.org.uk & Nathan.mathiot@adsgroup.org.uk) by 25 November.

Northern Ireland Protocol

There are new Gov.uk pages on placing manufactured goods on the NI market and placing manufactured goods on the GB market (including unfettered access content).

This complements the ‘how to use the UKNI marking page’ published a few weeks ago.

 Customs Import Declarations

HMRC have launched a webinar on Import declarations, with 8 different time slots available: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/help-and-support-for-uk-transition

 Below are also links to videos on customs processes:

•What are commodity codes? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ja0BeipzU-Y&list=PL8EcnheDt1zgewSxxQGs7l9OGDC2KxYTo&index=6

•What are controlled goods? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7L6hvq6XZc&list=PL8EcnheDt1zgewSxxQGs7l9OGDC2KxYTo&index=7

•How do I export? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IS3Gh3__O8k&list=PL8EcnheDt1zgewSxxQGs7l9OGDC2KxYTo&index=8

 Immigration/Mobility

There was an update on Frontier Workers published last week: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/frontier-workers-in-the-uk-rights-and-status

Intellectual Property rules are changing

At the end of the transition period on the 31^st of December, there will be changes to how the Intellectual Property (IP) system and the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) will operate. These changes will affect:

• Trade Marks and Designs
• Parallel trade from the UK to the EEA
• Unregistered Designs

You can find out more information about all of these changes in this news story from the IPO. Help is available to ensure your business is ready.

• Consider carefully where to disclose your designs to ensure they have adequate protection in their most important market;
• If you export IP-protected goods on the secondary or parallel market, contact the rights holder in the EEA to see if you have permission to continue to parallel export.
• Consider if you want exports to continue if you are a business that owns the IP rights for goods currently parallel exported from the UK to the EEA.

If you do not take action, there is a risk your business operations will be interrupted. You can find out what other actions you may need to take by using the checker tool at gov.uk/transition and signing up for business readiness updates.

Future flight challenge gives 48 UK projects a share of £33.5 million to kickstart the next revolution in aviation

Over 40 new innovative projects across the UK will receive a share of £33.5 million in funding from the future flight challenge, part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, delivered by UK Research and Innovation. On 09 November 2020, UKRI announced the first 20 projects to receive over £7 million in funding. The projects are being funded to put the UK in the driving seat for developing the next aviation revolution. The projects cover the use of drones capable of delivering COVID-19 medical supplies to remote areas, to technology to enable remote inspections of infrastructure and construction sites. The projects will also tackle key infrastructure and air traffic management challenges to ensure the UK maintains its exceptional air safety record and delivers practical and integrated solutions.

 Business and Industry Minister, Nadhim Zahawi, said:

As the UK leads the way in the aviation revolution, these bold proposals showcase the pioneering spirit of the UK’s aerospace and aviation industries in solving global issues from climate change, to getting vital medications to those in need. This funding for the sector is a testament to the vital role aviation continues to play in maintaining our well-earned reputation for research and development excellence. I look forward to seeing these concepts being developed into tangible products over the coming months and years.

 Gary Cutts, Future Flight Challenge Director said:

At this challenging time for the international aviation industry, it is a great testament to the UK’s drive and ambition that we had such a strong response to the first funded Future Flight competition. The breadth, quality and creativity of the bids has been exceptional and the economic and social benefits offered are significant.

 More details can be found here: https://www.ukri.org/news/uk-to-lead-the-way-in-the-future-of-aviation/