Will your organisation be affected by the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill?

There are uncertainties surrounding the proposed Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill. The Compliance People Consultant Alison Long gives a heads-up on how this Bill may affect your organisation.

Following Brexit, the proposed Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill   is set to remove or amend around 2,400 pieces of legislation based around European Union (EU) directives. If the Bill is passed in April 2023, any retained EU laws that are not specifically renewed will be repealed by the 31st December 2023 sunset clause.

WHY WAS THIS BILL PROPOSED?

The aim of this Bill is to allow the Government to amend, repeal and replace EU laws easily, and to restore priority to domestic law.

HOW WILL THIS AFFECT ORGANISATIONS?

Approximately 58 of the proposed 2,400 pieces of legislation are related to health and safety, including the following.

• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
• The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015.
• The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.

Primary legislation such as the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974   will not be affected by the changes.

There is uncertainty surrounding this deregulation process, as the Government has not issued any formal proposals regarding the fate of specific regulations. It is possible that these regulations will remain unchanged, be removed, or replaced. The Bill is currently in the committee phase in the House of Commons, but if it is passed, there will be changes to health and safety duties for organisations.

The current proposal requires both Houses of Parliament to approve any amendments or to revoke legislation. However, concerns are raised about the time it will take to consider pieces of legislation in detail before the sunset clause takes effect on 31st December 2023. The actual review processes are currently unknown.