Govt publishes The "Great Repeal Bill"

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...n-amend-great/
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/w...next-cm90psk97
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39266723

Govt publishes The "Great Repeal Bill"

The Bill will convert thousands of pieces of European legislation - 40 years worth - into British law and will repeal the European Communities Act 1972 which gives Britain's membership of the EU legal force

David Davis on the EU Withdrawal Bill: “We’re bringing into law 40 years of law, it is putting into British law what was European law.” pic.twitter.com/DCn8EmXB13

— BrexitCentral (@BrexitCentral) July 13, 2017

The Repeal Bill will mean our laws still function when we leave the EU, with changes made by Parliament and devolved administrations pic.twitter.com/ZHDPOzkEi1

— Department for Exiting the EU (@DExEUgov) July 13, 2017

The day after triggering Brexit, the government published details of its "Great Repeal Bill". Described by Theresa May as an "essential step" on the way to leaving the EU, it aims to ensure European law will no longer apply in the UK.

It is now being introduced to Parliament, with the formal title of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill. Here's how it will work:

Here it is, folks. The legislation formerly known as the Great Repeal Bill. pic.twitter.com/I4uHnAdhlI

— Kevin Schofield (@KevinASchofield) July 13, 2017

What it's all about

As its informal name suggests, the repeal bill will repeal the 1972 European Communities Act, which took Britain into the EU and meant that European law took precedence over laws passed in the UK Parliament. It will also end the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.

All existing EU legislation will be copied across into domestic UK law to ensure a smooth transition on the day after Brexit. The government says it wants to avoid a "black hole in our statute book" and avoid disruption to businesses and individual citizens as the UK leaves the EU.

The UK Parliament can then "amend, repeal and improve" the laws as necessary. Ensuring the continuity of EU rules and regulations is also meant to aid trade negotiations with the EU because the UK will already meet all of its product stands.

What's King Henry VIII got to do with it?

The government plans to enact its "corrections" to the statute book using what are known as Henry VIII powers, after the Statute of Proclamations 1539 which gave him the power to legislate by proclamation.

Given that this will not involve the usual Parliamentary scrutiny process, opposition parties have protested, with Labour claiming ministers were being handed "sweeping powers" to make hasty, ill thought-out legislation.

Ministers have attempted to reassure critics by saying such measures will be time limited and not used to make policy changes. In total, the government estimates that 800 to 1,000 measures called statutory instruments will be required to make sure the bill functions properly.

What's happening when?

The bill was included in the Queen's Speech in June and will be introduced to Parliament on 13 July.

It will then have to pass through both Houses of Parliament. The plan is for it to be passed ahead of the UK's exit from the EU but to become law only when it actually leaves. Under the formal timetable for negotiations, the UK is due to leave the EU in March 2019 unless both sides agree to an extension.

After Brexit

Until the UK actually leaves, EU law will continue to apply. But after leaving, the European Union (Withdrawal) Act (as it will be by then) comes into force.

The government says having the legislation in place will ensure a "calm and orderly exit". Then begins the long-term process of the government, and Parliament, choosing what it wants to do with the laws it has incorporated from the EU. With so many pieces of legislation to be considered, this could turn out to be a "major drain on resources" and should not "crowd out" other government policies, the Institute for Government think tank has warned.

An absolutely huge piece of legislation this.

A major constitutional law for the next few decades until it is all amended by successive governments and parliaments and slowly diverges from the European law it is now and will be when it is transplanted onto the statue books.

Very complex which is why the Henry VIII powers are being used. Critics are saying this is bypassing parliament, but we're not "creating" law in that we're importing existing law. As David Davies says, it is a technical procedure rather than he and other ministers simply creating law using royal powers.

The exciting thing is that after 2019 and at the next General Election, all of this law will now be fully up to us to amend, repeal or replace how we see fit. That's really good for democracy and ultimately is what Brexit is all about.

Thoughts?

[-:Undertaker:-]

Parliament returns after the summer break this week and The Great Repeal Bill will be this year's piece of major legislation.

This week, @DExEUgov introduces the EU (Withdrawal) Bill. Get more information here: https://t.co/lMn5wmVpkx pic.twitter.com/GZdO4s0pvu

— Rt Hon Steve Baker MP FRSA 🗽 (@SteveBakerFRSA) September 3, 2017

'Let's Brexit together' - Labour's @CarolineFlintMP says Labour shouldn't try to wreck the government's Brexit bill https://t.co/j5HeeZWU4D

— BrexitCentral (@BrexitCentral) September 3, 2017

Worth bearing in mind if hardcore Remain MPs attempt to amend or halt the bill then this will not stop Brexit given Article 50 has already been activated and is counting down, it merely will result in a legal mess once we've left. Respect our vote.

[dbgtz]

sorry, but are you suggesting a bill should go through without proper scrutiny?

[-:Undertaker:-]

sorry, but are you suggesting a bill should go through without proper scrutiny?

I'm suggesting that MPs who plan to use this as a coy attempt to force the government to commit to staying in the Single Market or Customs Union (de facto staying in the EU) are playing with fire. This legislation does not *create* new law, it merely transfers existing EU law onto the statute books. What is there to scrutinise in what is essentially a copy and paste exercise of *existing* law?

I do love the worry all of a sudden about "proper scrutiny" of this legislation from the hardcore Remain side though when for the past 40 years you've accepted all of these laws being made by other countries in another city for us without our elected Parliament having a say in them. A damascene conversion if there ever was one to the importance of Parliamentary Sovereignty.

[dbgtz]

I'm suggesting that MPs who plan to use this as a coy attempt to force the government to commit to staying in the Single Market or Customs Union (de facto staying in the EU) are playing with fire. This legislation does not *create* new law, it merely transfers existing EU law onto the statute books. What is there to scrutinise in what is essentially a copy and paste exercise of *existing* law?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics...b-by-ministers
https://www.theguardian.com/politics...n-carwyn-jones & http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-40582756

ritics of the bill say it confers significant extra powers to ministers to make changes without parliamentary scrutiny, using so-called delegated powers.

I do love the worry all of a sudden about "proper scrutiny" of this legislation from the hardcore Remain side though when for the past 40 years you've accepted all of these laws being made by other countries in another city for us without our elected Parliament having a say in them. A damascene conversion if there ever was one to the importance of Parliamentary Sovereignty.

implying I've been alive and politically aware for 40 years lmao
Pretty redundant statement here though. You talk about scrutiny as if someone outside of Westminster is incapable or implying that we didn't have an EU parliament to scrutinise (which was their entire bloody job). You say all of this as if we had laws which were unscrutinised forced upon us, which is false.
Scrutiny of legislation also has nothing to do with Parliamentary sovereignty (which was never lost to begin with, btw).

[-:Undertaker:-]

https://www.theguardian.com/politics...b-by-ministers
https://www.theguardian.com/politics...n-carwyn-jones & http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-40582756

implying I've been alive and politically aware for 40 years lmao
Pretty redundant statement here though. You talk about scrutiny as if someone outside of Westminster is incapable or implying that we didn't have an EU parliament to scrutinise (which was their entire bloody job). You say all of this as if we had laws which were unscrutinised forced upon us, which is false.

What exactly is contained within The Great Repeal Bill that to your mind should lead to MPs rejecting it? I'm curious to know. Yes, the link you provided mentions the powers of ministers using Royal powers but as David Davis says...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...mps-bid-avoid/

But Mr Davis said: “Everything that is significant in terms of changes - not technical changes but significant changes - will be done in separate primary legislation.

“Immigrations bills, customs bills, you name it.

“This Bill is about ensuring continuity. Anybody - repealer, re-Leaver or Remainer - should support this Bill.”

You must surely accept that it is literally impossible for Parliament to pass each piece of EU legislation - four decades worth - separately into British law piece by piece? It is right that Parliament scrutinises new primary legislation such as Customs and Immigration as mentioned above, but demanding a vote on each regulation is merely attempting to wreck the process.

Death by a thousand paper cuts.

Scrutiny of legislation also has nothing to do with Parliamentary sovereignty (which was never lost to begin with, btw).

Yes it was. EU law took precedence over British law and could tie the hands of our Parliament - something that we had not seen since before The English Reformation in Tudor times with the power of the Catholic Church. Technically Parliament has been sovereign for these past 44 years, but in the practical sense of examining and scrutinising legislation it has not been.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primac...United_Kingdom

In R v Secretary of State for Transport, ex p Factortame Ltd, the House of Lords ruled that courts in the United Kingdom had the power to "disapply" acts of parliament where they conflicted with EU law. Lord Bridge held that Parliament had voluntarily accepted this limitation of its sovereignty, being fully aware that, even if the limitation of sovereignty was not inherent in the Treaty of Rome, it had been well established by jurisprudence before Parliament passed the European Communities Act 1972.

"If the supremacy within the European Community of Community Law over the national law of member states was not always inherent in the EEC Treaty it was certainly well established in the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice long before the United Kingdom joined the Community. Thus, whatever limitation of its sovereignty Parliament accepted when it enacted the European Communities Act 1972 was entirely voluntary. Under the terms of the 1972 Act it has always been clear that it was the duty of a United Kingdom court, when delivering final judgment, to override any rule of national law found to be in conflict with any directly enforceable rule of Community law." - Lord Bridge of Harwich

[dbgtz]

What exactly is contained within The Great Repeal Bill that to your mind should lead to MPs rejecting it? I'm curious to know. Yes, the link you provided mentions the powers of ministers using Royal powers but as David Davis says...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017...mps-bid-avoid/



You must surely accept that it is literally impossible for Parliament to pass each piece of EU legislation - four decades worth - separately into British law piece by piece? It is right that Parliament scrutinises new primary legislation such as Customs and Immigration as mentioned above, but demanding a vote on each regulation is merely attempting to wreck the process.

Death by a thousand paper cuts.

Why should I trust the minister of a man whose PM promised not to call a snap general election many times... then did.
So long as all it does is c+p them in, then I am OK with that personally. I'm not OK with them choosing which is OK to copy and which isn't, or any other kind of modifications. I will say I haven't read the actual bill, just the criticisms.

Yes it was. EU law took precedence over British law and could tie the hands of our Parliament - something that we had not seen since before The English Reformation in Tudor times with the power of the Catholic Church. Technically Parliament has been sovereign for these past 44 years, but in the practical sense of examining and scrutinising legislation it has not been.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primac...United_Kingdom

You could also argue every power the EU had was consensual from treaties which (should) have been scrutinised by parliament.
I can see both sides of this argument but the main point was scrutiny of legislation having nothing to do with parliamentary sovereignty.

[-:Undertaker:-]

The House of Commons votes tonight on the second reading of The Great Withdrawal Bill.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe...thdrawal)_Bill

Effectively a double legal lock on our departure from the European Union given the legal process on one end (Article 50) is already underway, this repeal of the European Communities Act (1972) basically 'bookends' the process at our end in British law.

The Second Reading of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill has been adjourned and will resume on Monday 11 September. #EUWithdrawalBill

— UK House of Commons (@HouseofCommons) September 7, 2017

Today’s vote in parliament will ensure that the UK takes back control of its laws when we leave the European Union. pic.twitter.com/aeDa7FIWt0

— Conservatives (@Conservatives) September 11, 2017

Killing this bill would cause "huge problems" - @CarolineFlintMP explains why she is defying three-line whip opposing Brexit bill #r4today pic.twitter.com/KnbL259Hf7

— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) September 11, 2017

And the Labour rebellion is growing over the Labour whip against the bill.

30 Labour MPs have confronted Sir Keir Starmer.

30 Labour MPs met Keir Starmer to express their reluctance to oppose the Tory Brexit bill - Unbelievable!

— Graham Simpson (@grahambsi) September 10, 2017

[-:Undertaker:-]

The European Union (Withdrawal) Act has just this minute passed the House of Commons at second reading.

House of Commons votes 326 to 290 to approve the Second Reading of the #EUWithdrawalBill. Next stage, a Committee of the Whole House

— UK House of Commons (@HouseofCommons) September 11, 2017

BREAKING | EU Withdrawal Bill passes Second Reading, 326 to 290. Majority of 36. pic.twitter.com/Ivvlfi9biW

— Leave.EU (@LeaveEUOfficial) September 11, 2017

Edward Heath's treasonous European Communities Act (1972) is no more and sovereignty has finally returned to our Parliament.

The moment then-PM Edward Heath signed the Treaty of Ascension taking us into the EEC