National Security and
Investment Act 2021: Annual Report 2023-24.
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (): I am today laying before Parliament the Annual
Report covering the operation of the National Security and
Investment (NSI) Act 2021 for the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March
2024. This fulfils the requirements under section 61 of the NSI
Act and a copy of the report will also be published on GOV.UK(opens in a new tab).
The Government is committed to ensuring the Act protects our
national security and does so as effectively, efficiently, and
transparently as possible - giving investors the certainty they
need to kickstart growth across the UK.
The report shows the vast majority of notified acquisitions –
95.6% – were cleared to proceed within 30 working days. Of the
847 notifications reviewed – only 4.4% – were issued with a
call-in notice and underwent further assessment. Five final
orders were issued and ten called in acquisitions were withdrawn
before a decision was made. All notifications were screened
within the Act's statutory time limits.
This report shows that notifications, call-ins, final orders,
withdrawals, and final notifications covered many different
sectors and acquirers' countries of origin.
I have included new information in this year's report. For the
first time, the report sets out how many calendar days (as well
as statutory days) different stages of the process, for example
the time it took to make a final decision following a
notification or a call-in. I hope this will provide further
transparency on how the Act is operating.
