On 24 December 2020, the UK and the EU reached agreement on a Trade and Cooperation Agreement (the TCA) setting out their future relationship. The UK Parliament passed the European Union (Future Relationship) Act 2020 in one day on 30 December 2020. The TCA has been provisionally applied by both parties from 1 January 2021. The House of Lords is due to debate the TCA on 8 January 2021.
At the time of publication, the UK and the EU are continuing to negotiate their future relationship. Should a deal be reached, the Government has indicated Parliament would have to pass legislation to implement it. The requirements of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 would also need to be met before the UK Government could ratify a treaty. This article looks at the role of the House of Lords in this process.
The Trade (Disclosure of Information) Bill would allow Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and other public authorities to share data relating to the flow of traffic, goods and services into and out of the UK. The House of Lords is due to consider all stages of this bill on 17 December 2020. The bill essentially replicates some data-sharing provisions from the Trade Bill, currently at report stage in the Lords.
In Focus
The House of Lords is due to consider the Taxation (Post-transition Period) Bill on 16 December 2020. The Lords is debarred from amending it as it is a supply bill. The bill would implement customs, VAT and excise obligations arising under the Northern Ireland Protocol.
In Focus
In 2021, the UK will no longer be subject to EU state aid policy. The UK will follow World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules and the Government will consult on whether to go beyond them. The Government has laid draft regulations to disapply state aid provisions from retained EU law. This article looks at the background on state aid, including its relevance to the Northern Ireland Protocol and the future relationship negotiations with the EU.
In Focus
In the United Kingdom Internal Market Bill, the Government is seeking to ensure unfettered access to the UK internal market for “qualifying Northern Ireland goods”. On 30 November 2020, the House of Lords is due to debate the draft Definition of Qualifying Northern Ireland Goods (EU Exit) Regulations 2020. They contain the definition of “qualifying Northern Ireland goods” that will apply to the bill. This article explains the background to the regulations, and why the Government also intends to introduce further legislation in this area.
In Focus
On 26 November 2020, the House of Lords is due to debate a trade deal, the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the UK and Japan. This article looks at the deal and the scrutiny it has received from the House of Commons International Trade Committee and the House of Lords International Agreements Sub-Committee.
In Focus
On 9 November 2020, the House of Lords voted to remove from the United Kingdom Internal Market Bill controversial clauses relating to the Northern Ireland Protocol. This article explains what these votes were about and considers what might happen in relation to these clauses in the bill’s further parliamentary stages.
In Focus
After the transition period, customs procedures for goods arriving from the EU will change. These regulations would amend earlier regulations by: delaying until 1 July 2021 the requirement for entry summary declarations for goods coming from the EU to Great Britain; introducing shorter deadlines for submitting exit and entry summary declarations for goods being moved to/from certain territories by short sea journeys; and correcting issues relating to economic operators registration and identification requirements.
In Focus
The UK will no longer be part of EU reciprocal and cross-border healthcare arrangements after the transition period ends on 31 December 2020. However, some groups of people will retain rights after this under the terms of the withdrawal agreement. The Government made regulations in 2019 to deal with reciprocal and cross-border healthcare if the UK left the EU with no ‘divorce’ deal. It is now planning to update these regulations to reflect the withdrawal agreement.
In Focus
The House of Lords made several changes to its procedures during the Covid-19 pandemic. This included the use of virtual sittings and sittings which featured both physical and remote participation. This article provides a chronology of these developments.
In Focus
Since the passage of the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018, the Government has been preparing for the UK to implement sanctions once it is no longer covered by the EU’s legal framework. The draft Sanctions (EU Exit) (Consequential Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 would amend existing sanctions regulations made under the 2018 act to ensure that references in other pieces of primary and secondary legislation are up to date.
Research Briefing
The United Kingdom Internal Market Bill is a government bill that would make provision for the continuation of the UK’s single market when the transition period ends on 31 December 2020. As part of this it would provide for the ‘market access principles’ of mutual recognition and non-discrimination to apply to the sale of goods and the provision of services within the UK. It also seeks to provide unfettered access for qualifying Northern Ireland goods to the market in Great Britain. It contains provisions that seek to give ministers the power to unilaterally interpret, modify the application of or disapply parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol, notwithstanding their obligations under relevant international and domestic law.
In Focus
The next round of UK-EU negotiations is due to start on 28 September 2020. The House of Lords is due to hold a take-note debate on the UK’s approach to negotiating the future relationship with the EU on 23 September 2020. This article gives an overview of the UK’s approach to its future relationship with the EU and the progress of negotiations so far.
In Focus
After the Brexit transition period, the UK will no longer participate in the Dublin system, an EU arrangement for dealing with asylum applications. This article looks at the findings of a House of Lords committee report that considered the impact of Brexit on refugee and asylum policy, and sets out what has happened since the report was published in October 2019.
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