Tom Goodenough Tom Goodenough

Will the government’s EU withdrawal bill pass unscathed? Don’t bet on it

Brexit means Brexit, but unfortunately the EU withdrawal bill – which actually does the legislative job of taking Britain out of the EU – is somewhat trickier to get to grips with. The original bill is 60 pages long, and there are now 470 amendments – running to some 200 pages – and counting. The House of Commons library predicts the bill will be ‘one of the largest legislative projects ever undertaken in the UK’. All of this will keep MPs – and the government, as it fights off the backbench rebels – very busy indeed over the coming weeks. Two days each week for the next month have been set aside to cover the committee stage of the bill, where MPs are given a chance to scrutinise the bill line-by-line and attempt to make changes. It all starts today. Here is the Coffee House guide to what happens now:

Tuesday 14th November:

Today’s committee stage kicks off at 3pm, with votes expected at 7pm and 11pm. The first four hours will be given over to the repeal of the European Communities Act. A clause marking the date of Britain’s departure from the EU: that ‘the United Kingdom ceases to belong to the European Union on 30 March 2019’, is tabled for discussion, but there will not be a vote on this until a later committee hearing.

Shortly after 7pm, MPs will switch to discussing how EU law that is retained – moved on to the statute book after Brexit – will be interpreted. They will also discuss key amendments, including one demanding the government spell out details of how EU law will actually apply during a Brexit transition period. Once again, there won’t be a vote on this amendment until the latter stages of the committee hearing.

Wednesday 15th November:

Today’s debate will largely be given over to Labour demands for workers’ rights to be enshrined in law.

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