Brexit Freedoms Bill

Following our Wednesday Webinar session. This is the third of a series of daily articles that aims to expand upon some of the points raised and inform you of our perspective of where things currently stand during this period of U-turns and governmental instability.

The Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill (nicknamed the Brexit Freedoms Bill) was published on 22 September 2022. The existing draft of the Bill automatically revokes most EU-derived legislation by 31 December 2023 (although for some legislation that date could be extended to 23 June 2026) under so-called ‘sunset provisions’ and, where there is conflict, it will give UK law priority over EU law. The Bill also gives the power to restate legislation or replace it altogether but as yet, it is not clear how the details will pan out.
 
What is clear, however, is that the Brexit Freedoms Bill will, one way or another, affect long familiar employment legislation such as the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE), Working Time Regulations, Part-Time Workers Regulations, Fixed-Term Workers Regulations and Agency Workers Regulations, as well as equal pay. It might also affect GDPR but please see our separate update in our previous article. We don’t expect the rights to simply disappear but they may be tweaked, overhauled and, possibly but less likely, completely removed. The current government has given some early indications of the possible direction of travel: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9638/.
 
Unfortunately, it is impossible to say what the impact might be for businesses, employees, and workers, and the coming months are likely to give rise to yet more uncertainty. The BLHR and employment team will be watching developments over the coming months and when the details are clearer we will be sharing our understanding via updates to help you prepare.
 
The Brexit Freedoms Bill will cover other areas too. We have specialist teams that work in all the areas of business the legislation touches and they will be happy to discuss the implications that are relevant to you. Just get in touch and we will direct you to the right person.

Be sure to check out the next article for further updates. Or to view our Wednesday Webinar for yourself click here. 

To discuss any matters whether you are an employee or employer please contact Julie Temple directly here.