One to follow! in a rather surprising move, the .UK registry has proposed the launch of .UK second level registrations in 2013.
Currently, it is only possible to register third level domains such as companyname.co.uk. A consultation process is under way, and will close on the 7th of January 2013.
The process is not entirely without controversy, but judging from past experience with similar decisions in other TLDs, this is likely to result in a launch.