Parliament logo
Campaign and petition email responses | Withdraw the Retained EU Law Bill

Campaign and petition email responses

Withdraw the Retained EU Law Bill

The SNP Scottish Government, MPs and MSPs reject this Bill which is an attack on devolution, workers rights', food standards, nature, animal welfare and our Scottish legal system. This Bill recklessly and unnecessarily puts thousands of laws at risk with no consideration of the consequences.

The legislation represents a significant attack on devolution, by allowing UK Government ministers to act in policy areas that are devolved - for example around environmental laws and animal welfare protections - and to do so without the consent of Scottish Ministers or the Scottish Parliament.

The SNP tabled an amendment against the legislation at Second Reading on Tuesday 25th October. This would have stopped the Bill proceeding as it is completely unfit in its current state.

However, no amount of amendments could improve the Bill - it must be scrapped.

Scottish Government Ministers have written to the Tory government urging them to drop proposals which are an attack on nature and devolution. The letter highlighted concerns from nature groups such as the RSPB and the Woodland Trust. You can read the letter in full here.

SNP Scottish Ministers are committed to aligning regulation in Scotland with EU regulation. We completely reject the Tory governments ideological pursuit to rip up decades of social progress.

Under this Tory government we have seen disastrous policies – such as fracking - introduced which threaten the environment. The SNP will never accept these policies in Scotland.

SNP MPs will be scrutinising the Bill in coming weeks and will reject this latest iteration of Tory attacks on fundamental protections and the supremacy of EU law. The politically driven sunset clause deadline means little scrutiny and a new Brexit cliff-edge of uncertainty for millions.

We welcome comments from various stakeholders, from the TUC to the RSPB, who have warned of the “reckless” impact of this Bill. We will continue to engage with these groups and make sure their voices are heard in Parliament.

The SNP remain committed to aligning regulation in Scotland with EU regulation and re-joining the EU as an independent nation.

Parliament logo

@StewartMcDonald on Twitter

Loading