(especially for the main text to n 38) Implementing the recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry: for England, see the update to section [11.5] above; for Wales, see the update above to section [11.5.2]; for Scotland, see the update above to section [11.5.3]; and for NI, see the update above to section [11.5.4].

On monitoring official responses to reports of official enquiries, see also the main text to n 83 in section [3.4.3] of the book.

Responding to negative aspects of the public sector input into the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and the investigations into the 1989 Hillsborough football disaster, the Government tabled the Public Office (Accountability) Bill 2026 (in August 2026 awaiting Second Reading in the Lords). This places a duty on public authorities and public officials (most provisions apply UK-wide) to act with candour, transparency and frankness; makes provision for the enforcement of that duty in their dealings with inquiries and investigations; requires public authorities to promote and take steps to maintain ethical conduct within all parts of the authority; creates an offence in relation to public authorities and public officials who mislead the public; creates further offences in relation to the misconduct of persons holding public office, abolishing the common law offence of misconduct in public office; and assists lay persons participating at inquiries and investigations where the conduct of public authorities may be in issue. This is already dubbed ‘The Hillsborough Law’.

Retrofitting homes: see the National Audit Office, Decarbonising Home Heating (Session 2023-24, March 2024, HC 581) and Energy Efficiency Installations under the Energy Company Obligation (Session 2024–2026, October 2025, HC 1334); in January 2025, DESNZ barred 39 businesses from installing new insulation in people’s homes; routine checks carried out by TrustMark, overseeing tradespeople working in homes, uncovered examples of substandard solid wall insulation. In April 2026, the Serious Fraud Office arrested four people on suspicion of a scam invoicing energy companies for home insulation work under the Energy Company Obligation not in fact carried out: Jasper Jolly, ‘Four People Arrested Over Suspected £44m UK Home Insulation Scam’ The Guardian (22 April 2026).

On retrofitting, see also the House of Commons Energy Security and Net Zero Committee, Retrofitting Homes for Net Zero (First Report of Session 2024-25, May 2025, HC 453). In Scotland, see Alistair Hill and Jane Williams, Heat in Buildings - Supporting the Rollout of Heat Pumps and Solar PV in Scotland (Consumer Scotland, May 2025); also Converting Scotland's Home Heating (Consumer Scotland, June 2025). The UK also has a non-profit National Retrofit Hub, which in July 2025 reported on the multiple barriers to wider uptake of retrofit possibilities by householders. Two rounds of planned subsidies from DESNZ and the NI Executive for projects to manufacture heat pumps in the UK – the Heat Pump Investment Accelerator Competition – have generated reports from the Subsidy Advice Unit of the CMA under the Subsidy Control Act 2022: the first in June 2023 and the second in November 2025. For the new UK subsidy regime, see section [6.2.3] in the book and its updates above. 

In July 2025 the UK’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) announced that it was bringing forward reforms to what it calls a ‘fragmented’ existing regulatory system, as part of its Warm Homes Plan, launched with more details in January 2026 and a commitment to £15bn expenditure. The aim is to help millions of families benefit from solar panels, batteries, heat pumps and insulation that can cut energy bills, with targeted interventions for those on low incomes; upgrades for social housing; new protections for renters; and a universal offer for all households to upgrade homes. A Research Briefing from the House of Commons Library (February 2026) summarises the current support and funding systems for energy efficiency in homes across the UK; and a new PAS 2025:2023 applies to all Government-backed retrofit schemes in the UK, encouraging independent oversight and improving accountability.

The DESNZ has established a Retrofit System Reform Panel, chaired by a junior minister, to gather insight from industry, regulatory and consumer protection experts which will help develop options for reform. As well as creating proposals for a more unified system of standards, oversight and protections, the group will also look at creating accessible and robust consumer redress mechanisms. On DESNZ in general, see the National Audit Office, Department for Energy Security & Net Zero 2024-25 (November 2025). For structural problems in the UK home improvement sector, see also the updates above to sections [6.5.3] and [7.3.2]. 

In August 2026, the US/UK think tank Common Wealth published a report by Madeleine Pauker and Donal Brown: A Plan for Places: Transforming Housing and Lowering the Cost of Living Through Home Improvement Corporations. This proposes a new public sector model for retrofitting in the UK: the establishment of around thirty Home Improvement Corporations operating at county or combined authority level. These public bodies would coordinate area-based retrofit, employ permanent Direct Labour Organisations to build the workforce, and integrate repairs and wider improvements so homes in poor condition can benefit. Home Improvement Corporations would also hold powers to prevent tenant displacement and bring empty homes into use.

On misleading heat pump advertisements, see the update above to section [6.2.2].

In August 2025 the RICS revealed plans to develop new pathways to RICS membership: these include Residential Retrofit Surveying (AssocRICS) and Sustainability Advisory (MRICS).

(especially for the main text to n 39) There is since September 2025 the Independent Public Advocate (E&W), whose statutory role under Part 2 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 is to provide support and guidance to victims of major incidents (like Grenfell Tower). Its first holder, Cindy Butts, said in The Guardian (19 December 2025) that her role includes ensuring that truth is exposed in the immediate aftermath of disaster  

so there would be no need for the substantial inquiries and reports the country had seen in recent years. We are there in the early hours, weeks, months and years so that we don’t have to get to the stage where we have to have a public inquiry that lasts decades, where the truth has to be prized from institutions.

(p 674) ‘Claimant’: some courts and tribunals (like the Federal Court of Australia) term the person ‘making an application’ for a decision or determination by the court or tribunal an applicant, against a respondent.

(p 675) ‘Common law': the Lady Chief Justice (E&W) announced in June 2026 that the Chancery Division of the High Court is to be integrated into a new Business and Property Division, with a President expected to be Sir Colin Birss, Chancellor of the High Court. From 1 October 2026, the new Division will include in one institution (sitting in London and seven regional centres) the Commercial Court, the TCC and the Admiralty Court, as well as a number of existing special Lists within existing High Court Divisions, otherwise remaining unchanged: see the Senior Courts (Transfer, Amendment and Consequential Provision) Order 2026 (SI 2026/723).

(p 684) ‘Respondent’: some courts and tribunals (eg the Federal Court of Australia) term the person defending an application to the court or tribunal made by another party the respondent.