Brexit: The Process of Withdrawing from the EU

A talk given in October 2016 as part of Cambridge University's Brexit Week on legal and political aspects of the process of the UK's withdrawal from the European Union

Transcript

1. Brexit Week Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott
2. Brexit Week Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott Three issues Before During After Triggering Article 50 The “Great Repeal Bill” Disentangling EU and UK law
3. Brexit Week Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott Before: Article 50 How it works • Decision, notification, negotiation • Two-year period • Possibility of “hard” Brexit Issues in the litigation • Removal of statutory rights • ECA as source of statutory rights? • Inevitable withdrawal of rights? • Are the rights replicable? What if the Government loses? • Pro-Remain MPs • Devolved nations • House of Lords
4. Brexit Week Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott During: The “Great Repeal Bill” What will it do? • Repeal ECA 1972 • Convert EU into UK law • Provide basis for disentangling? Is the legislation necessary? A “smoke and mirrors” exercise? • Transitional preservation essential • But ECA repeal not necessary • No need for this now • Impression of involvement? • What should Parliament do?
5. Brexit Week Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott After: Disentangling Substantive issues • A Herculean task • Which EU laws? • Jurisprudence of CJEU? Procedural issues • Respective roles of Parliament and executive? • Use of secondary legislation? • Parliamentary sovereignty
6. Brexit Week Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott Brexit: The Process of Leaving the EU Professor Mark Elliott @ProfMarkElliott