A new code of practice has been published by the British Standards Institute (BSI) which should help structure disaster planning and recovery.

Firms are expected to re-evaluate their business continuity plans in light of the new standards and apply for certification to show their business is well-prepared.

Soon after the announcement of the new standard last week, HBOS, Scottish Power and logistics giant TDG had already shown interest in showing their compliance with the new code.

Experts welcomed the updated standards, with Steve Beck, a business continuity consultant for Hitachi Data Systems, suggesting that the BSI standard could spread worldwide.

"Organisations that operate to the best practices and gain the certification through audit will not only help them differentiate themselves from their competitors but will also add to the UK's overall resilience in a world that is fraught with new and developing threats," he said.

Despite the recent release of the new code, a supplement to these standards is already in the works which will specifically focus on how best to protect IT systems from failure or restart them quickly in the event of a disaster.