Issuers, investors and advisers following the reforms to the UK listing regime have probably been wondering what's happened to the new UK Listing Rules. 

Originally the new UK Listing Rules sourcebook (UKLR) was scheduled to be published at the start of the second half of 2024 (see CP23/31: Primary Markets Effectiveness Review: Feedback to CP23/10 and detailed proposals for listing rules reforms (fca.org.uk)). The FCA then indicated that it expected to seek board approval of the final UKLR in June or July 2024 (see  Primary Market Bulletin 48 | FCA).

Most of us will have assumed that the announcement of the General Election will have impacted this timeline and the FCA has recently confirmed this in its Regulation round-up June 2024 (govdelivery.com). Although the FCA did not make an express reference to the new UKLR, the FCA has confirmed that it is “not planning to publish any major consultations or significant final rules during the election period and while Parliament is dissolved.”

In practice this means that nothing will happen until Parliament re-opens. Currently the State Opening of Parliament is scheduled for 17 July 2024 and this will mark the formal start of the parliamentary year.  So depending on the current state of board approval within the FCA, we can probably expect publication of the new UKLR in late July or August 2024.

How can we help?

If you would like to discuss the changes to the UK Listing Regime, please speak to your usual contact at Burges Salmon or Nick Graves, head of the firm's Corporate Department.