Thank you to all of those who have contacted me about the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill.

I agree with you all that we must try to prevent the chaos that the Retained EU Law Bill could cause. As you know, this Bill aims to allow Ministers to amend or repeal all legislation carried over from our membership of the EU with nearly no parliamentary scrutiny. I am deeply concerned that this would put at risk hard-fought rights and protections for British workers, consumers and the environment while diminishing democratic scrutiny and accountability in key areas of British law.

On 10 May, the Government announced it was abandoning its plan to cause most retained EU law (REUL) to expire at the end of the year. I believe this reflects the damage that this approach would do to the economy, at a time when businesses and families are already struggling with the cost-of-living crisis. Indeed, that is why I supported efforts to force the Government to abandon this approach several months ago when the Bill was before the House of Commons. It is disappointing that it took so long for the Government to reverse its course. It was always completely unacceptable that it wanted the power to potentially allow thousands of pieces of legislation to be removed from our statute book at the end of this year, with no idea of the exact legislation it would apply to.

More broadly, I remain completely opposed to the enormous powers Ministers are seeking to give themselves through the Bill, and I share concerns that the Government is seeking to use it to embark on a process of mass deregulation. The laws at risk are not cumbersome red tape but rights and protections British people rightly expect. It is worrying, for example, that the Government has announced plans to water down working time rights, as well as protections for employees when their business changes owner.

We do need to establish the future status of laws carried over from our time in the EU, but I fundamentally disagree with the Government’s approach to doing this. I therefore welcomed amendments made to the Bill by the House of Lords that sought to enable Parliament to have a say in deciding what happens to these laws that affect our lives. Unfortunately, these amendments were voted down by the Government in the House of Commons. I can nevertheless assure you that I will continue to support efforts to ensure we do not water down hard-won workers’ rights, undermine business confidence or give Ministers unaccountable powers they cannot be trusted with.

Thank you again to all of those who have contacted me about this issue.