06 April 2017
Week in Brief: UK
Brexit
REPEAL BILL WHITE PAPER: The Government has published the Great Repeal Bill White Paper setting out the mechanisms through which Britain will disengage from the EU. The idea is that as from the date of exit (29 March 2019), the European Communities Act will be repealed so that European Institutions and the European Court of Justice (“the ECJ”) will cease to have sway here. That, however, is just a start. English law, and also that of Scotland and Northern Ireland, is heavily intertwined with that of the European Union and much of it was introduced in compliance with European Directives or judgements of the European Court of Justice. What to do? To disentangle the remainder of UK law from the bits which derive from Europe would simply be impractical. In the White Paper, the Government has taken the only possible solution. There are two parts to it:
- all European law in force at the Exit Date will become British law. That means that directly enforceable European rules will continue to have effect and British Courts will continue to follow pre Exit decisions of the ECJ. From then on, however, the lawmaking power returns to Westminster (or in some cases the devolved authorities) so that the laws inherited from Europe, like any other legislation, can be amended if and when change is desired;
- that leaves, however, another problem. Some of the rules which will be in place at Exit Date give power to European Institutions or are otherwise inextricably linked to EU membership. Those rules will need to be changed before Exit and, as there are likely to be a lot of them, the Government proposes to take the power to change them by statutory instrument rather than requiring endless Acts of Parliament. This is a wide power, and has been criticised as such. However it will only be available to adapt the rules where this is necessary to make them work post Brexit. It will not be used for policy changes.
So far so simple, you might think. Employment rights, environmental rights, consumer protection rights will all remain exactly as they are when we leave the EU until and unless Parliament decides to change them. Still, that leaves some difficult points. What about the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights? That is to be abolished on the basis that its purpose was to codify existing EU rights and that those rights will themselves remain in place. There is room for confusion here. The codifying provisions of the Charter of Fundamental Rights are entirely separate from the European Convention on Human Rights which is a creature of the Council of Europe and not of the EU. That is the one that creates rights of privacy etc. It is also the one that was at one time thought to require that prisoners be giving voting rights. It will not be affected.
Another area of difficulty relates to devolution. Currently there are a number of areas where the devolved assemblies make rules within a framework set by the EU. If that framework disappeared, coherence across the UK would be lost. In these circumstances it is proposed that the Government should take over the EU’s role but the devolved rights should continue to be operated as before. The split of responsibility with Scotland over fishing rights is likely to be contentious.
That of course leaves Gibraltar, the Channel Islands and other dependent territories. Of these Gibraltar is the most difficult because of the political tension with Spain and also because, although it is not within the EU, substantial tracts of EU law apply. For example Gibraltar applies VAT. The White Paper does not go into how all this will be dealt with, probably because that is a matter on which Gibraltar itself needs to be consulted.
This White Paper was clearly written by lawyers, its purpose being to provide a mechanism which works for Brexit. Accordingly, discussion of it should be focussed on refining the way in which that mechanism operates. No doubt some of the more testosterone-fuelled politicians will seek to make difficulties, and the scope of the power to use secondary legislation is an area where this has begun to occur. Nonetheless, the proposals are sensibly constructed and, headbangers aside, should not be too difficult to agree on.
EU NEGOTIATING GUIDELINES: The EU has also been off to the printers with a note from the European Council (the President of which is Donald Tusk) and member states on how the negotiations are to be conducted. A two-stage process is envisaged. The first part will be devoted to disentangling the relationship and, no doubt, settling the amount which Britain needs to pay in respect of outstanding liabilities. The second phase will involve discussion as to the relationship between the UK and the EU following exit. That will not, however, begin until substantial progress has been made on the first phase. Presumably the idea here is to separate negotiations about the Brexit Bill from negotiations about a future relationship.
The guidelines also raise the possibility of transitional arrangements, confirm that efforts will be made to avoid a hard border within Ireland, state that the EU will expect the UK to continue to honour agreements made before Brexit, and stipulate that EU institutions and Courts should deal with matters pending at Brexit. The sting comes in the tail. Having made it clear that Britain cannot be a member of the single market but that the parties will work towards a trade agreement, the guidelines state that no agreement will apply to Gibraltar without the separate agreement of Spain. That has caused outrage on the Rock and is likely to give rise to endless trouble.
Cuts, kind and unkind
NHS CUTS: The National Health Service is to drop its 18 week target for surgery for hip replacements and cataracts in order to make funds available for improved A &E services and cancer therapy. Also on the priority list are mental health and general practice. Simon Stevens, the chief executive, points out that 10 years ago half of the patients waited 18 weeks for operations. Now the figure is about 10%.
Mr Stevens also set out his plans for improved cancer care, including improved diagnosis, ten new assessment centres, and upgrading of radiotherapy machines. He proposes too that more resources be put into helplines and evening and weekend GP surgeries. Hospitals are to warn patients of the effects of drinking and smoking.
FORCES CUTS: According to The Times, the armed forces face a shortfall of about £1 billion a year over the next 10 years. Savings to deal with this are likely to involve a reduction in the number of Royal Marines and the suspension of overseas training. The forces face increased costs for a number of reasons. The weak pound has made the fleet of aircraft required for the two new carriers more expensive. It is also likely that the cost of the new submarines required to host the nuclear deterrent will overrun.
SAT CUTS: In a reversal of government policy, SATS for seven-year-olds are to be abolished from next year. Instead the children will be assessed during their reception year at the age of four or five but will not be aware of the process.
COMMISSIONERS SALARY: Cressida Dick, the Oxford graduate who moves from the Foreign Office back into policing to lead the Met, has asked for her pay to be reduced by £40,000 a year from the £270,000 a year paid to her predecessor.
Other political news
LORDS EXPENSES: Allegations in The Sunday Times suggest that some peers may be abusing the £300 a day expense allowance by turning up, claiming the allowance, and then not doing any work. The total of allowances paid in the year to October 2016 was £19 million.
PASSPORT REMOVED: The passport of Sufiyan Hamza, the son of hate preacher Abu Hamza, has been withdrawn. He is currently believed to be fighting in Syria and can no longer return to the UK.
WESTMINSTER UPGRADE: The decision on whether MPs and Peers should move out of the Palace of Westminster while it is refurbished has been deferred yet again. The vote will now not be until the end of May and it is feared that reluctance to spend the money at a time of austerity will result in the matter being referred for another review.
LABOUR: The Labour Party, having concluded that remarks by Mr Livingstone that Hitler backed Zionism prior to the Holocaust breached party rules on anti-Semitism, has decided not to expel him. Instead his current suspension has been extended for a further year. Mr Livingstone, who has a record of taunting the Jewish community, based his claims on the 1933 Ha’avara agreement between the Nazis and German Zionists under which Jews leaving for Palestine to escape increasing persecution were permitted to reclaim a proportion of assets forfeited on emigration. The decision has caused widespread anger in the Jewish community and will further erode Labour support there.
Courts
OLDER JUDGES: Lord Neuberger, the presiding judge of the Supreme Court, has called for the retirement age of judges to be put back from 70 to its previous level of 75 in order to deal with a recruitment shortage.
PROCTOR SUES: Former Tory MP Harvey Proctor is to sue the Metropolitan police and the anonymous witness “Nick” in respect of unsubstantiated allegations against him and other public figures. It is understood that substantial damages may already have been paid by the Metropolitan Police to Lord Bramall.
RIGHT TO DIE: A man suffering from motor neurone disease has been refused leave to pursue a declaration that the Suicide Act 1961, which prohibits assisting suicides, is incompatible with the Human Rights Act. Mr Conway’s case is different from those which have previously come before the courts because his illness is terminal.
CROYDON ASSAULT: Seven people are in custody following the assault on asylum seeker Reker Ahmed in Croydon on Friday. Mr Ahmed suffered a fractured spine and brain haemorrhage although his condition is now stable. Two men are still being sought.
GOOGLE: It is understood that Google is trying to develop technology to identify hate videos and prevent them being run with advertising. A boycott by more than 250 companies has resulted in their going into “emergency mode” on the issue. Apparently the technology may make it possible for advertisers to verify the posts against which their advertisements appear.
Miscellaneous
DIESEL CARS: Diesel cars more than two years old will be the subject of a £12.50 per day charge in a new central London zone covering the area between the North Circular and the South Circular. Other cities are considering bringing in similar charges. The Government is known to be concerned about the charges, bearing in mind that many people bought diesel cars following government advice that they would reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The trouble is that the scientists underestimated the emission of nitrogen oxides. It is understood that consideration is being given to whether there should be incentives to motorists to scrap diesel cars.
ONLINE DEGREE: Exeter University is to offer a number of online postgraduate degrees from September. These include degrees in finance and management, business and marketing. The fees for a two years of study will be £18,000. A number of US universities already offer online courses.
SPORT: Briton Johanna Konta has won the Miami tennis open, becoming the world number seven. Oxford won the men’s boat race by one and a quarter lengths. Cambridge won the women’s boat race.
If you enjoyed this article please share it using the buttons above.
Please click here if you would like a weekly email on publication of the ShawSheet
