The United Kingdom’s new law regulating state aid to private-sector businesses is off to a sluggish start as few plaintiffs have stepped forward to challenge subsidies, McGuireWoods London partner Matthew Hall wrote in a Jan. 23, 2026, article in Law360.
The U.K. Subsidy Control Act 2022 (SCA) replaced the rules enforced by the European Union before Brexit. It outsources oversight to interested third parties, who can challenge subsidies authorized by public authorities. Hall questioned the decision not to create a state aid regulator with enforcement power, as the E.U. did, and rely instead only on challenges by private parties. So far only two cases have been decided under the SCA, both in the government’s favor.
“Parties seem unwilling to bring claims or unaware of their rights and this calls into question the effectiveness of the challenge regime,” Hall wrote. “However, a challenge is a potentially useful tool, and companies should still consider the option in an appropriate situation.”