According to the Certification Officer’s GOV.UK listing, Blackburn v Unite the Union concluded on 27 May 2026, so there will be no hearing on 28 May. The same update leaves two summer hearings on the list: Flaherty v Unison on 15 and 16 July, and Munslow v Fire Brigades Union on 4 and 5 August. (gov.uk)
These cases sit within the remit of the Certification Officer, which GOV.UK describes as the independent statutory office holder regulating trade unions and employers’ associations and dealing with complaints about breaches of certain rules or legal requirements. In its 2026 governance statement, the office said it expects an increase in formal decisions and hearings during 2026 to 2027 as it manages transition under the Employment Rights Act 2025. (gov.uk)
The statutory route matters. Section 108A of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 allows a union member, or former member at the relevant time, to complain of an alleged breach or threatened breach of union rules in specified areas, including elections and removals from office, disciplinary proceedings, non-industrial-action ballots, and the constitution or proceedings of an executive committee or decision-making meeting. (legislation.gov.uk)
On the published case summaries, Flaherty v Unison concerns one section 108A complaint alleging a rule breach connected to the union’s National Executive Council election. Munslow v Fire Brigades Union is listed as involving 11 section 108A complaints alleging rule breaches connected to disciplinary proceedings and/or the constitution or proceedings of a decision-making meeting. The listing records the subject matter and hearing dates, not any concluded finding on the merits. (gov.uk)
The Certification Officer’s hearing guidance says a hearing is the means by which the office determines a complaint where there is a dispute about an alleged breach of rule or law, and that the process is used to test the evidence and give both sides the opportunity to present their case. The same statutory scheme provides for a declaration and, where appropriate, an enforcement order requiring the union to remedy a breach or prevent a similar breach in future. (gov.uk)
For a policy audience, the immediate significance is that both listed summer matters concern internal union governance rather than industrial action. One case concerns an NEC election in Unison; the other concerns discipline and formal decision-making in the Fire Brigades Union. Those are the categories section 108A brings within the statutory complaints route. (gov.uk)
The notice also confirms that hearings are being conducted remotely using Zoom, with public attendance available on request through the Certification Office, and that reasonable adjustments can be arranged for disabled attendees. In practical terms, that keeps these governance disputes visible beyond the parties themselves and gives members, officials and observers a direct route to follow how the statutory complaints process is being used in summer 2026. (gov.uk)