Advice and guidance on the health needs of migrant patients from Mongolia for healthcare practitioners.

The Office for the Internal Market (OIM) is part of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). It has been tasked with supporting the effective operation of the UK internal market using its economic and technical expertise, following the UK’s departure from the European Union. It will provide reports to the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government, the Northern Ireland Executive and UK Government.

To help fulfil its role, the OIM has created a new digital reporting service, through which businesses can share their experience of how the UK internal market is working. For example, this could include issues relating to trading across all four nations, such as if producers from one part of the UK are paying more to meet the product standards in another part of the UK in order to sell there. It could also include difficulties in using certain professional qualifications awarded in one part of the UK in different parts of the UK.

The information provided will contribute to the first State of the UK Internal Market report, planned for Spring 2022, as well as providing intelligence for any discretionary reviews that the OIM decides to carry out.

From today, Governments can also seek advice or reports on the impact that rules and requirements are having – or may have – on the internal market. In addition, the OIM will look at changes to the operation of the internal market over time.

In order to deliver reports and advice which are useful and relevant, the OIM will bring together information and data gathered across the four nations to become a centre of expertise on the internal market.

Andrea Coscelli, Chief Executive at the CMA, said:

The Office for the Internal Market will shine a light on how effectively companies are able to sell their products and services to people across the four nations, post-Brexit. Strong competition relies on effective trading, and customers rely on competition to get the best choice of products and services.

The OIM will listen to concerns and report to all Governments on the barriers faced by businesses. Its reporting and advice rely on hearing from those who are directly affected, which is why we need people to tell the OIM about any relevant trading issues that they encounter.

More information can be found on the Office for the Internal Market homepage.

1. Following the OIM’s consultation with businesses and stakeholders across the UK, it has published a summary of responses and final version of its guidance and statement of policy on the enforcement of the OIM’s information-gathering powers.

2. The OIM will provide independent, technical, non-binding expert advice to Governments across the UK on regulations or regulatory proposals that may impact the effective operation of the internal market. It will also monitor and report on the health of the UK internal market, including trends and developments across sectors and regions.

3. A provision (for example, legislation, regulation etc) that is necessary to implement the Northern Ireland Protocol will fall outside of the scope of the Act and the OIM will not be able to offer advice or produce reports on it.

4. BEIS has also published information to help businesses and enforcement authorities understand the UK internal market.

The Monument venue joins other temporary courts located in Southwark, Westminster, Barbican and Croydon – set up to increase capacity and tackle the impact of coronavirus on the criminal justice system. Together they have heard hundreds of cases during the pandemic, helping to minimise delays for victims, witnesses and defendants.

The new site – which usually hosts conferences for international businesses – is a stone’s throw from Monument tube station, making it easily accessible to court users. Its two courtrooms will hear non-custodial jury cases for crimes such as theft and low-level drug possession. In the event of a guilty verdict, the trial judge may decide to relist the case at a nearby Crown Court for sentencing.

The court comes equipped with the latest technology rolled out at speed by HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) during the pandemic – meaning defendants can appear remotely by video to avoid any delays to proceedings. It comes after ministers recently confirmed some 32 Nightingale courtrooms hearing criminal trials up and down the country will have their leases extended to Spring 2022 – continuing to help alleviate pressures on nearby Crown Courts.

Justice Secretary, Dominic Raab, said:

We’re continuing to pull on every lever to ensure the criminal justice system recovers as quickly as possible from the pandemic.

The new Nightingale court in Monument is the latest step in this fight, providing vital additional capacity to minimise delays for Londoners.

Major challenges remain which is why we are investing hundreds of millions to further increase capacity, deliver swifter justice and support victims.

Today’s announcement forms part of the significant action taken since the start of the pandemic to ensure the courts can recover from the pandemic and tackle delays. This includes:

• opening a super courtroom in Manchester to tackle trials with up to 12 defendants on trial suspected of crimes including, but not limited to, gang-related crime such as county lines drug trafficking, murders, and money laundering
• modifying a further 71 courtrooms to host trials with three or more defendants
• setting up Nightingale courtrooms across the country to increase capacity and ensure more trials can be heard – with a commitment to extend 32 Crown courtrooms that deal with criminal trials until March 2022
• working to reopen an additional 60 existing Crown courtrooms following the lifting of most restrictions – including social distancing – in England and Wales
• ensuring there is no limit on the number of days that Crown Courts can sit for this year
• putting in place measures to make over 300 jury trial rooms available to safely run trials
• hosting more than 20,000 hearings using remote technology each week (across all jurisdictions) – a huge rise from a standing start in March 2020

The impact of these measures is already being seen. England and Wales was among the first major jurisdictions in the world to resume jury trials, the number of outstanding cases has dropped by tens of thousands in the magistrates’ since last summer, while the Crown Courts are dealing with cases at around pre-COVID-19 levels – listing thousands each week.

Dominic James, Venues Director of etc venues who owns the site said:

Our relationship with HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) goes back to the middle of 2020; working in partnership with HMCTS at our Prospero House venue in London, which was the first Nightingale court to mobilise in early August 2020. HMCTS then selected our Maple House venue in Birmingham as part of the second phase.

We are delighted to further support HMCTS in providing a third Nightingale court at Etc.Venues Monument in London. It is a great compliment to our Covid-secure operations and strong relationship with HMCTS that a third venue has been selected to further assist the Ministry of Justice to reduce the backlog of trials.

We welcome the opportunity to host cases from late September onwards whilst our core business of providing inspiring space for events, meetings and conferences recovers back to full strength.

Notes to editors:
1. Monument Nightingale court is an annex of the Central Criminal Court (CCC), and its cases will appear on the court list for the CCC. Like Aldersgate House (Barbican) Nightingale court it will hear cases from any Crown Court in London.
2. This marks the fifth Nightingale court in London – joining Prospero House, 102 Petty France, Jurys Inn Croydon, and Barbican.
3. Plans for more courts to reopen to help recover from the pandemic were announced in July.
4. The Lord Chancellor recently set out his plan for court recovery in a speech delivered to the Law Society.