The European Commission has launched an infringement procedure by sending a Letter of Formal Notice to Poland regarding the new disciplinary regime for judges. The Polish government has 2 months to reply. The new disciplinary regime undermines the judicial independence of Polish judges by not offering necessary guarantees to protect them from political control, as required by the Court of Justice of the European Union. Firstly, the Commission is of the opinion that Poland failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 19(1) of the Treaty on European Union read in connection with Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which enshrine a right to an effective remedy before an independent and impartial court.
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published its final instruments and guidance that will apply in the event the UK leaves the EU without a deal or an implementation period. As the UK prepares to leave the EU, the FCA has been working to deliver a transition that is as smooth as possible. The package of documents published contains the majority of the final instruments and guidance, following the February publication of the FCA’s Policy Statement with near-final instruments.
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The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co KGaA (FMC) has agreed to pay more than $231 million to resolve parallel SEC and U.S. Department of Justice investigations related to its violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) across multiple countries for nearly a decade. The SEC’s order finds that FMC, a German-based worldwide provider of products and services for individuals with chronic kidney failure engaged in misconduct in Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Angola, Turkey, Spain, China, Serbia, Bosnia, Mexico, and eight countries in the West African region against a backdrop where the company failed to have sufficient internal accounting controls. 

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Following the support from Heads of State or Government expressed at the European Council on 22 March for a concerted approach to the security of 5G networks, the European Commission recommended a set of concrete actions to assess cybersecurity risks of 5G networks and to strengthen preventive measures. The recommendations are a combination of legislative and policy instruments meant to protect our economies, societies and democratic systems. With worldwide 5G revenues estimated at €225 billion in 2025, 5G is a key asset for Europe to compete in the global market and its cybersecurity is crucial for ensuring the strategic autonomy of the Union.
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Mortgage customers who have previously been unable to switch mortgages despite being up-to-date with their payments (commonly known as mortgage prisoners), could soon be able to find a cheaper deal after the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) proposed changes to how lenders assess whether or not a customer can afford the loan. In the final report of its Mortgages Market Study the FCA confirmed its earlier findings that the mortgage market is working well in many respects but falls short of the FCA’s vision in some specific ways. The consultation on new lending rules forms part of a package of remedies designed to help the market work better.
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UBS AG (UBS) has been fined £27,599,400 by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for failings relating to 135.8 million transaction reports between November 2007 and May 2017. Mark Steward, FCA Executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight said: “Firms must have proper systems and controls to identify what transactions they have carried out, on what markets, at what price, in what quantity and with whom.  If firms cannot report their transactions accurately, fundamental risks arise, including the risk that market abuse may be hidden.”
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published its second thematic review of the debt management sector, looking at commercial and not-for-profit firms that provide debt advice and administer debt management plans to help customers deal with their debts. The FCA’s first thematic review in 2015 found significant concerns with the quality of advice being given by commercial providers in particular. Today’s review shows that most customers are getting better advice and outcomes today than was previously the case.
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