A little under two years after the National Security and Investment Act 2021 (the “NSIA”) came into force, the government has issued a call for evidence to consider changes to the regime. According to the government, its aim is to make the NSIA more “business friendly”, an objective which is welcomed by a corporate lawyer.
The main areas covered by the call for evidence are:
- the mandatory notification regime, including whether the scope of activities set out in the 17 mandatory sectors should be refined and whether any specific exemptions should be put in place, for example, in relation to internal reorganisations which can fall within the regime even though there is no ultimate change of control.
- improving the notification and assessment process to increase transparency. Although the government sets out several changes which have already been made in this area, people involved in an NSIA notification often find the regime to be opaque.
- developing government guidance.
The NSIA has come under scrutiny from various commentators throughout its short life and certain elements of the regime have received criticism from stakeholders. Although the call for evidence was not unexpected, it is good to see that the government is considering whether to make some (hopefully) positive changes to these elements.
The call for evidence can be accessed here, with the deadline for responses being 15 January 2024.
In order to be truly effective, the NSI Act must also be flexible, adapting to the changing nature of our economy and evolving to consider all of those acquisitions that might be considered sensitive.
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