At the end of 2020 (and the end of the transition period), the EU and the UK reached an agreement in principle on the terms of a trade deal between them, the ‘EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement’. To help aid business continuity the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 provided for direct EU legislation and EU-derived subordinate legislation to continue to have effect in the UK and this became referred to as ‘Retained EU Law’ (REUL).
On 22 September 2022, the UK Government published the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill. Under the Bill, it was proposed that all retained EU law will be revoked on 31 December 2023 (or at a later date prior to 23 June 2026 if a consensus to delay was reached) unless Members of Parliament took steps to codify it into UK law. The scope of the Bill was significantly reduced in May 2023 given the volume of concerns that were raised by both Houses about the timescales, impact and risk of pushing through such a seismic change. As a result, just under 600 pieces of REUL will be revoked by 31 December 2023 under the terms of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023, which came into force on 29 June 2023, focusing on specific laws which have been identified as redundant or which have no practical application in the UK. That being said, the Act does also allow for additional pieces of REUL to be amended or revoked in the future using powers conferred in accordance with its terms.
Businesses will still need to monitor how the Government intends to exercise its powers under the Act to revoke any other pieces of REUL, as well as how the UK develops its body of laws without the constraints imposed by EU law (whether through powers conferred by the Act or otherwise), closely. At Shoosmiths, we are staying close to developments and will publish insights to keep you informed of the on-going legal implications of Brexit.
