The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill is set to revoke certain EU legislation, including, potentially, TUPE, The Working Time Regulations and more.
In his latest article, Employment Solicitor Chris Dobbs looks at this bill in further detail and outlines the potential changes that could occur as a result of it.
Some background
Four years ago, I wrote an article citing a Government white paper which said that there would be no regression in employment laws as a result of Brexit.
Eighteen months ago, my colleague Paul wrote an article after Britain and the EU reached agreement which speculated on some potential changes which could actually happen.
What is the Retained EU Law Bill?
We now have the excitingly named Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill which, as drafted, automatically revokes all directly applicable and EU-derived secondary legislation from the statute books at the end of 2023.
The only things which will remain are those specifically and deliberately retained either through ministerial regulation or under devolved powers.
What will the Retained EU Law Bill do?
Unless specifically retained, the bill could mean that we see the automatic abolition of:
- TUPE
- The Working Time Regulations
- Agency worker protections
- Some equal pay legislation
The broad drafting of this proposed Bill means that it covers not only the legislation specifically introduced by virtue of the European Communities Act (the legislation which allowed Britain’s EU membership in the first place and gave us directly effective EU law).
But also legislation which was created by Parliament in order to bring about EU policy. For example, some parental leave rights exist in this way.
What changes might the Retained EU Law Bill bring?
There is nothing obvious to suggest that the Government plans to specifically protect any of these rights or to introduce ‘British versions’ of them, as it did for GDPR, for example.
There is scope for a Minister to simply pass a regulation retaining TUPE, for example, and so this may well be what actually takes place where legislation as drafted fulfils its purpose.
In 2019, the Conservative manifesto referenced an Employment Bill which would “protect and enhance workers’ rights as the UK leaves the EU”. We have been waiting three years for any hint of this Bill and it has never materialised.
In 2021, a review and consultation exercise of workers’ rights and employment law was postponed and was never subsequently revived. It is therefore hard to predict any changes because there has been no public conversation about them.
What happens next?
Watch this space. Unless appropriate orders, regulations or full legislation are passed accordingly, we could be looking at some major changes to employment law in the next 15 months.
What those changes may be are hard to say. The so-called ‘bonfire of EU law’ was originally sold with the promise of corresponding British law and it remains to be seen if one can be implemented without the other.
While removing barriers to business transfers and simplifying holiday pay calculations may well be popular moves, Britain has often been ahead of the curve when it comes to employee protections too.
A specialist Employment Solicitor’s view
Chris Dobbs, Employment Solicitor, says: “This is only a Bill at present and commentators are already highlighting its controversial provisions.
A final version of it may retain existing law in 2023 where suitable alternative provisions are not already in place, and so it is difficult to be anything but speculative at this stage.
There is, however, clearly an appetite in Government to shift from EU retained law to domestic legislation. How and what form this happens is something we will all want to keep a very close eye on.”
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