National Security and Investment Bill: a new frontier for scrutiny of investment in the UK

Together with a number of policy papers, it sets out the Government’s plans for an entirely new regime: (i) requiring mandatory suspensory notification of transactions in particularly sensitive sectors; and (ii) encouraging voluntary notification of other transactions, including the acquisition of land and intellectual property, that could raise national security concerns. Significantly, the UK Government has a five-year window to call in for review transactions taking place on or after 12 November 2020. Our alert details the transactions that are potentially on the hook, the key steps in the Government’s review process, potential outcomes and the consequences of non-compliance.