The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 (c. 28) is an act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

to revoke certain legislation implementing

European Union law European Union law is a system of Supranational union, supranational Law, laws operating within the 27 member states of the European Union (EU). It has grown over time since the 1952 founding of the European Coal and Steel Community, to promote ...

in the UK (

retained EU law The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (c. 16) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to repeal the European Communities Act 1972, and for parliamentary approval to be required for any withdrawal agreement negotiated between th ...

), following the UK's exit from the European Union. Originally promoted by the government as the "Brexit Freedoms Bill" and introduced in Parliament in 2022, the bill ran into significant opposition from many sources. In late April 2023, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade

Kemi Badenoch Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke Badenoch (' Adegoke; born 2 January 1980) is a British politician who has served as Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservati ...

announced that the government was planning to reduce the number of laws to be repealed by 31 December 2023 to around 800, as opposed to the government's original target of around 4,000 laws. Such reversal was met with dismay by Brexit advocates, including the Bill's original architect

Jacob Rees-Mogg Sir Jacob William Rees-Mogg ( ; born 24 May 1969) is a British politician, broadcaster and member of the Conservative Party who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for North East Somerset from 2010 to 2024. He served as Leader of the House o ...

. In May 2023, the Bill suffered further reverses as the House of Lords rejected a number of aspects of the proposed legislation. On 29 June 2023, the bill received royal assent. The act took effect on the 1st January 2024, as a result retained EU law supremacy has ended within the UK, and retained laws no longer need to be interpreted in line with EU law principles.

Provisions

According to the crossheadings, the act provides for: * Sunsets of

* Assimilation of retained EU law * Interpretation and effect of retained EU law * Modification of retained EU law * Powers relating to retained EU law and assimilated law * Retained EU law dashboard and report * Abolition of business impact target

Terminology

;Assimilated law:

Legislative consent

Under the terms of

devolution Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territori ...

, the Government of the United Kingdom is required to invite the

devolved administration Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories h ...

s to indicate their consent (or not) to proposed legislation that would affect devolved matters. However, it is not required to be bound by them. On 23 February 2023, the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( ; ) is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. It is located in the Holyrood, Edinburgh, Holyrood area of Edinburgh, and is frequently referred to by the metonym 'Holyrood'. ...

voted to refuse its consent to the bill. On 28 March 2023, the

Senedd The Senedd ( ; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, Its role is to scrutinise the Welsh Government and legislate on devolve ...

of Wales voted to refuse its consent to the bill. The

Northern Ireland Assembly The Northern Ireland Assembly (; ), often referred to by the metonym ''Stormont'', is the devolved unicameral legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliam ...

had been in

abeyance Abeyance (from the Old French ' meaning "gaping") describes a state of temporary dormancy or suspension. In law, it can refer to a situation where the ownership of property, titles, or office is not currently Vesting, vested in any specific perso ...

since May 2022 due to a

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

boycott in a protest against the

Northern Ireland Protocol The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, commonly abbreviated to the Northern Ireland Protocol (NIP), is a protocol to the Brexit withdrawal agreement that sets out Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit relationship with both the EU and Great Bri ...

. Consequently, it did not meet to consider a legislative consent motion.

References

{{reflist

External links

Retained EU law dashboard
Brexit-related statutes United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 2023 Consequences of the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum

Provisions

Terminology

Legislative consent

See also

References

External links