British Govt Refuses Withdrawal of Legislation Binding Brexit Treaty

The British government has refused withdrawal of legislation that breaks a legally binding Brexit treaty, despite a resounding rejection of the bill by the upper house of Parliament.

The House of Lords voted by large margins to strip from the Internal Market Bill clauses that give the government power to break sections of the divorce agreement it signed with the European Union before the U.K. left the bloc in January. Britain PM acknowledged that the bill breaches international law, and the legislation has been condemned by the EU, U.S. President-elect Joe Biden and scores of British lawmakers, including many from Johnson’s Conservative Party.

Former Conservative leader Michael Howard, a member of the Lords, said he was “dismayed” by the bill and urged the government to think again. But the government said it would restore the rejected sections when the bill returns to the House of Commons in the coming weeks. The statement reveals the bill is needed as an insurance policy to ensure smooth trade among all parts of the U.K. — especially Northern Ireland, which shares a border with the EU — no matter what happens to U.K.-EU trade after Brexit. In a statement released by the Government, the authorities said, “We have been consistently clear that the clauses represent a legal safety net to protect the integrity of the U.K.’s internal market and the huge gains of the (Northern Ireland) peace process”. On January 31, 2020, the Britain has left the EU’s political structures but remained in its economic embrace until a transition period that would end December 31, 2020. The two sides are trying to strike a new trade deal, but talks are stuck on key issues, and have been soured further by the Internal Market Bill.