May 2026
Consumer, Competition and Sustainability
Law Commission publishes consumer class actions terms of reference
On 20 April 2026, the Law Commission announced it will consult on whether to introduce a consumer class actions regime to strengthen enforcement of UK consumer law.
The review will assess benefits and risks, including against public enforcement and alternative dispute resolution, and will consider design options if a regime is recommended, including court redress and distribution of damages and efficient litigation at proportionate cost. It will also consider whether any such regime should be opt-in as well as opt-out.
The Law Commission has published an advance stakeholder questionnaire with a deadline for responses of 30 October 2026, and will begin work on the project in the autumn.
CMA launches strategic market status investigation into Microsoft’s business software ecosystem
On 14 May 2026, the CMA launched a strategic market status ("SMS") investigation into Microsoft’s business software ecosystem under the UK digital markets competition regime.
The CMA will assess whether Microsoft has SMS and can limit customer choice through bundling, limited interoperability, default settings and constraints on integrating rival AI services, across productivity software, PC and server operating systems, relational database management systems, and security software. The scope may also address software licensing practices affecting cloud competition.
The CMA has published an SMS Investigation Notice and an Invitation to Comment, with responses due 4 June 2026. The investigation must conclude within 9 months unless extended, with a current deadline of 13 February 2027.
The CMA noted that an SMS designation does not assume wrongdoing and may enable conduct requirements or pro-competition interventions, including addressing Microsoft software licensing concerns identified in the CMA cloud services market investigation.
European Commission adopts delegated regulation on derogations from the ban on destroying unsold consumer products
On 22 April 2026, the European Commission published Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/296, supplementing the Ecodesign Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 by setting the conditions under which economic operators may derogate from the ban on destroying unsold consumer goods.
The ban currently applies only to Annex VII goods (apparel, clothing accessories and footwear) from 19 July 2026 (19 July 2030 for medium-sized enterprises).
Permitted derogations cover: dangerous or legally non-compliant products; IP or licence infringement; technical infeasibility of removing protected or inappropriate branding/design; damage or contamination where repair is not technically feasible or cost-effective; and irreparable design or manufacturing defects.
Destruction is only permitted after: (i) a donation offer to at least three suitable EU social economy entities has been declined; (ii) an offer has been published online for at least eight weeks without uptake; or (iii) no recipients can be identified by social economy entities or reuse-market operators.
Economic operators must retain verification documentation for five years, produce it to competent authorities within 30 days of request, and provide waste treatment operators with a statement of the applicable derogation.
The Regulation applies from 19 July 2026 and will be reviewed by 12 May 2031.
