Removal of EU law ‘sunset clause’ welcomed
By Monidipa Fouzder >>
(11 May 2023)
The Law Society has welcomed the government’s decision to replace a ‘sunset clause’ in the Retained EU Law Bill with a list of laws that will be revoked by the end of the year.
Society president Lubna Shuja said: ‘The government’s decision to remove the sunset clause and replace it with a list of the retained EU laws that it intends should fall away at the end of 2023 is the right decision. This should provide some certainty for businesses, lawyers and citizens alike.
‘We await the list being published. It is essential there is sufficient time to review affected legislation and consider the repercussions in all areas of law.’
In a written parliamentary statement yesterday, business and trade secretary Kemi Badenoch said Whitehall departments had been working hard over the past year to identify retained EU law to preserve, reform or revoke. ‘However, with the growing volume of REUL being identified, and the risks of legal uncertainty posed by sunsetting instruments made under EU law, it has become clear that the programme was becoming more about reducing legal risk by preserving EU laws than prioritising meaningful reform.’
More than 1,000 EU laws have been revoked since the UK left the EU. As well as around 600 laws that the government proposes to revoke directly through the REUL bill, the Financial Services and Markets Bill and Procurement Bill will revoke another 500 pieces of retained EU law.