The Effect of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill

Since the United Kingdom left the EU on 31 January 2020, law derived from the EU has consistently been removed and later restored in some different form into the UK Domestic Law.

What is the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill (Retained EU Law Bill)?

It is a Bill which is to have the effect of revoking certain retained EU Laws and is to make several provisions which could potentially include the following:

• Interpretation of retained EU law and its relationship with other laws;
• To make provisions relating to powers to modify retained EU law; and
• To enable the restatement, replacement or updating of certain retained EU laws.

The Retained EU Law Bill would automatically revoke most retained EU Law at the end of 2023 (31 December 2023).

Essentially, any retained EU Law that remains in force following the end of the proposed deadline will be termed “assimilated law.”

It is not yet known what the full effect will be on businesses in the UK, as (to this point) there has been little guidance from the government as to the extent that Retained EU Law will be preserved, revoked, amended or replaced.

Even where Retained EU Law is preserved, it may be flexible for the government to re-interpret and adopt different applications into the UK legal system.

The potential impact on UK businesses could be significant, and each business must assess the potential impact against its current activities.

The Law Society has issued some commentary on Retained EU Law, and their recommendation is that the government should extend the deadline of 31 December 2023.