Brexit: Is The “Great” Repeal Bill just another Cut and Paste Job?

Remember how we were going through the pain of Brexit to get away from all those pesky European laws? Well it turns out we are taking them with us. The Great Repeal Bill was published July 13 outlining the transfer of powers from the EU to the UK but far from the Brexiteers’ promises to free Britain from Brussels-style red tape the Bill will see all those bureaucratic laws simply copied over to become the UK’s own laws, at least for the time being.

After that will come the use of so-called “Henry VIII” powers allowing Ministers to alter the laws they don’t like. The latest guidance provided by the Government suggests that those powers should be used mainly for replacing references to the EU but the guidance concedes that the powers could also be used to make other changes, which have not yet been specified.

Overall it seems that with Brexit intended to take control of UK laws back from the grasps of EU bureaucrats that power will now be given to Ministers to do what they deem necessary with minimal trouble. What could possibly go wrong?

The Bill

Now called the rather less poetic European Union (Withdrawal) Bill, its 19 clauses essentially repeal the European Communities Act so that EU law is no longer the UK’s national law, before passing all those EU laws as national law. Makes sense? That means 40 years of complex and carefully researched laws regarding diverse fields such as agriculture, manufacturing and energy will simply be copied over so the UK doesn’t have to start from scratch. The Bill also conveniently avoids saying when it will come into force, using only “exit day” in case negotiations are extended beyond the deadline of March 29, 2019.

The idea that Ministers will have the power to change previous EU laws with minimal time and effort – dubbed “Henry VIII powers” due to their lack of accountability – suggests a prime opportunity for both abuse and mistakes.

The delegated powers memorandum which is supposed to clarify the issue concedes that as negotiations are ongoing it can only suggest ways the powers “might” be used, indicating that there could be a lot more to these powers than harmless name changes.

The Institute for Government think tank has noted the hilarious intricacies of that very real copy and paste job. “Many EU laws mention EU institutions in which the UK will no longer participate after Brexit, or mention ‘EU law’ itself, which will not be part of the UK legal system after Brexit,” it said.

Undemocratic?

Professor Steve Peers, an EU law expert at the University of Essex, said the Government should plan bigger changes in advance. “The Government could be pressed to make more effort to table Acts of Parliament well in advance of Brexit Day on the planned changes to some key areas, for instance agriculture and fisheries, to enable full parliamentary scrutiny,” he said.

Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer (left) said Labour wanted to restrict those powers and could block the bill when it is voted on in September if it does not receive other concessions.

“We need effective legislation that protects British workers and consumers, enshrines equality laws, enforces environmental standards and devolves powers across the country,” he said.

Can we keep copying?

If we can take existing legislation what is to say we can`t have an ongoing exchange of information? “There are many important functions carried out at EU level, such as the evaluation and authorisation of chemicals, air safety regulation and genetically modified food and feed regulation,” said the explanatory notes of the Withdrawal Bill. “Depending on what is agreed with the EU, many functions may need to be transferred to appropriate bodies in the UK for them to continue.” That means the UK will more than likely have to be responsible for its own enforcement of such standards, which will be crucial to securing bilateral agreements with the EU after Brexit to ensure that Britain can keep exporting to the remaining 27 members of the union.

So we are leaving the EU, taking it’s laws, giving Ministers the freedom to change those laws with less hassle, and we will almost certainly have to set up our own new set of authorities and bureaucratic bodies to enforce those laws and standards. Isn’t freedom wonderful?

by Stewart Vickers

The post Brexit: Is The “Great” Repeal Bill just another Cut and Paste Job? appeared first on Felix Magazine.