The Great Repeal Bill, and what it will mean for British law

THERESA MAY is poised to introduce as many as 15 new laws to shape Britain’s future after it leaves the European Union, the Government has announced.

David Davis, the Brexit Secretary, yesterday published the Great Repeal Bill which will formally revoke the European Communities Act of 1972 on the day Britain leaves the EU.

In its place the Government will transfer up to 19,000 European laws and regulations into British law in one of the biggest shake-ups of Britain’s statute books in history.

Mr Davis also announced that the Government will introduce a series of new laws before Britain leaves the EU that will come into effect after Brexit.

The moves are likely to provoke bitter divisions in Parliament.

Parliamentary sovereignty

“We will end the supremacy of EU laws.”

What it means: The bill will repeal the European Communities Act 1972, the legislation which originally approved the British accession to the European Community and gave direct effect to European law in Britain. It will come into effect on the day the UK leaves the EU. Will it happen? There are likely to be significant hurdles. The Liberal Democrats have vowed to launch “legislative war” and try to ambush the Government in a bid to tie ministers up for years.

Gina Miller, the businesswoman who launched the successful legal bid against the Government over Article 50, is considering legal action amid concerns that ministers will bypass parliamentary scrutiny.

The great ‘copy and paste’

“As a general rule the same rules and laws will apply after we leave the EU as they did before.”

What it means: The Great Repeal Bill will see up to 19,000 pieces of EU law transferred on to the UK’s statute books. It will copy en masse all European law, known as the acquis communautaire, into British law.

The Government’s White Paper says that without this mass transfer of legislation there will be “large holes in our statute book”.

Ministers have specified three areas that will be protected –workers rights, environmental protection and consumer protection.

Will it happen? While many Eurosceptics are uncomfortable with the idea of transferring EU regulations into law, they accept it is necessary for the ultimate prize of parliamentary sovereignty.

New laws

“The Government will also introduce a number of further bills during the course of the next two years to ensure we are prepared for our withdrawal”.

What it means: The Government is preparing to introduce up to 15 news laws that will shape the future of Britain after it leaves the European Union.

The White Paper confirmed that they will cover some of the most contentious areas of Brexit: the UK’s migration system and a customs bill.

Will it happen? The new legislation is likely to provoke bitter divisions in the Commons, uniting pro-European Tories, Labour MPs and Liberal Democrats.

European Court of Justice

“Any question as to the meaning of EUderived law will be determined in the UK courts by reference to the European Court of Justice’s case law.”

What it means: Britain may be leaving the EU, but decades of case law will still apply. The Government says that all rulings that exist up to the day we leave the EU will still be in force to “maximise certainty” for the legal system.

It says that European judgments will be given the same status as decisions by the Supreme Court, and urges it to take a “sparing approach” and not to override European rulings.

Will it happen? Yes, but many Tory MPs are reluctant.