Minutes of ORBC Steering Board meeting held on 23 October 2025
Updated 28 November 2025
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Date: 23rd October 2025
Venue: Hybrid, Old Admiralty Building and MS Teams
Attendees
| Name | Organisation |
|---|---|
| George Foster (Chair of ORBC Steering Board) | Department for Business and Trade |
| Simon Squire (Deputy Chair of ORBC Steering Board) | Department for Business and Trade |
| John Morrison (Board Member) | Institute for Human Rights and Business |
| Lorand Bartels (Board Member) | Freshfields |
| Stephen Russell (Board Member - Alternate) | Trades Union Congress |
| FCDO Representative (Board Member) | Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office |
| DWP Representative (Board Member) | Department for Work and Pensions |
Observers
| Name | Organisation |
|---|---|
| CMA Representative | Competition and Markets Authority |
| Joint Heads of the ORBC Dispute Resolution Unit (Presenters) | Department for Business and Trade |
| Head of RBC Policy (Presenter) | Department for Business and Trade |
| Senior Policy Advisors and Caseworkers, ORBC (Presenters) | Department for Business and Trade |
Item 1: Welcome and introductions
- The Chair welcomed the Steering Board members to the October meeting and outlined the agenda for the meeting
Item 2: Minutes and actions from previous meeting
- The Chair noted 3 actions from the June meeting had been completed
Item 3: Updates
Updates on UK NCP team members
- The Chair noted that several new people had joined ORBC since the last Board meeting
ORBC engagement
- ORBC updated the Board on activities to promote the OECD Guidelines and Dispute Resolution Unit to stakeholders, especially businesses
Update on new Board appointments
- The Deputy Chair gave an update on the appointments process for new Board Members
Update on RBC review
- ORBC provided an update on stakeholder engagement and policy development taking place under the RBC review
Item 4: ORBC casework
- ORBC said it continues to be a busy time for new cases, but higher staff numbers and new processes are helping to manage the caseload
Item 5: The role and responsibilities of the Office for RBC
- The Board discussed what should be the roles and responsibilities of the rebranded ORBC