Internal Fractures

 
 
 

Good afternoon,

A new advertising blitz by the Government has started this week. We look into what advice is offered to prepare for the end of the transition period. A potential Westminster power grab is afoot as the Government publishes the White Paper on the UK internal market. Devolved administrations are unhappy that this may encroach on their areas of responsibility. As usual we have some recommended reading for your Friday.

Enjoy,
Jacob

PLAY

In Politics

UK Internal Market

  • UK Government published its White Paper on the UK internal market

  • The UK Government’s proposals are likely to strain relationship with the devolved administrations further

  • Tight timeline for any legislation to be passed and scrutinised properly

Legislation on the internal market of the UK is coming to Parliament. This is the legislation the Scottish Government has threatened to defy. The UK Government confirmed in their White Paper that “we want to legislate..by the end of 2020”. A tight turn around considering there remains five pieces of other crucial Brexit legislation to pass by the end of the year.

This White Paper outlines that the UK Government wants to “guarantee the continued seamless functioning of the UK Internal Market.” as the UK leaves the EU. However devolved administrations are concerned that this is a Westminster power grab. 

Through the UK leaving the EU, powers that have previously been at an EU level have moved back to the UK. In this transfer of powers, 160 policy areas intersect with devolved competence, including the environment, agri-foods, and fisheries. These policy areas vary depending on each unique devolved settlement. The concern is that the UK Government’s legislation will be used to force devolved administrations to accept (potentially lower) standards in the interest of internal market integrity.

The UK Government states “the devolved administrations would retain the right to legislate in devolved policy areas that they currently enjoy” but there remain many details to be ironed out in how the regulation of the internal market will be managed. The paper also outlines that “new mechanisms” will be needed to ensure trade across all four nations is smooth. The effect of this could undermine the devolved competencies depending on how these mechanisms are made.

Currently many aspects of policy areas such as food safety and the environment are devolved competences of the administrations in Scotland and Wales. There is concern that Westminster will use an internal market bill to enable it to force Scotland and Wales to accept the sale of products it doesn't want. For example, with a UK-US trade deal Westminster might use its powers to force Scotland to accept the sale of chlorinated chicken therefore overriding the devolved settlement as a result. 

Trust is already low between the devolved administrations and Westminster. They have been squeezed out of the Brexit process, for instance during the passage of the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill 2020 where the Scottish and Welsh administrations withheld consent along with the Northern Ireland Assembly. This latest move deepens suspicion of Number 10’s motives to centralise power further.

A consultation has been published, available here, and focuses on four questions:
 

  1. Do you agree that the government should seek to mitigate against both ‘direct’ and ‘indirect’ discrimination in areas which affect the provision of goods and services?

  2. What areas do you think should be covered by non-discrimination but not mutual recognition?

  3. What would be the most effective way of implementing the two functions outlined above? Should particular aspects be delivered through existing vehicles or through bespoke arrangements?

  4. How should the Government best ensure that these functions are carried out independently, ensure the smooth functioning of the Internal Market and are fully representative of the interests of businesses and consumers across the whole of the UK?


The consultation runs from July 16th 2020 to 13th August 2020. 

A thread of engagement with civil society exists through the document but there are no concrete measures into how this would be done in practice. The sector’s engagement is mentioned as one of the supporting aims, and in the “next steps” the Government “invites views from industry, civil society, think tanks and academics, and from the devolved administrations”. 

If the UK Government rushes this bill through Parliament in the autumn there will be great discomfort in the devolved administrations. It is a bill that needs careful thinking, and much scrutiny. It needs the full and proper engagement of each devolved administration not a few days in the Commons and limited consultation.

In Policy

Check Change Go

  • New Government advice to prepare for the end of the transition period 

  • Focus mainly on individuals and business

  • Advice for civil society is limited and doesn’t answer key questions

The transition period will end on the 31st of December and this week the UK Government launched a new campaign with information for individuals and businesses about how to prepare for it. When it ends the UK will either enter into a new relationship with the EU (if a deal is agreed in the next few months) or it will face a no-deal Brexit.

The information provided is available at www.gov.uk/transition. It features heavily on those travelling to Europe from the 1st January next year and on businesses trading between the EU and UK. 

Traveling to the EU has significant changes. As freedom of movement will end on the 31st December 2020 there are new rules for UK citizens who have lost their freedom of movement rights. Visa’s are not needed for short tourist trips (up to 90 days in any 180 day trip) however you may have to show you have enough money for your stay and a return trip booked at the border. Importantly the European Health Insurance Card will only be valid up to 31st December 2020 therefore travellers will need to get insurance. 

If you take a pet abroad to the EU you will need to contact your vet 4 months in advance to follow the new pet travel process. This is because the previous pet passport scheme will not be available to UK citizens. 

In further advice, EU citizens who wish to continue living in the UK are asked to apply for settled or pre-settled status via the EU Settlement Scheme. The deadline for applying for settled status is the 30th June 2021, but you have to live in the UK by the 31st December 2020. 

UK citizens who are living in the EU will need to check whether they need to apply for residency, if they are covered for healthcare, and if their drivers licence is valid. Depending on which nation you live in there are variations. Check here for further information. As covered previously, British in Europe and the3million have looked in much greater detail as to how the EU is telling member states to apply the Withdrawal Agreement in regards to UK citizens living in the EU.

The advice for businesses focuses heavily on the customs side however there is some limited advice for charities and voluntary organisations. Organisations need to check if any employees need visas or work permits if they work in the EU. They are also encouraged to get EU citizens who are employees in the UK to apply for settled status. Finally they encourage organisations to continue to apply for EU funding, though the example given is Horizon 2020 funding.

Ultimately the advice for charities and voluntary organisations is limited in what it answers. 
While the advice is to continue applying for EU funding it gives no information about what to do about when the funding ends this year. Furthermore it gives no details about the promised UK Shared Prosperity Fund that is due to replace the soon to end EU funding. It is problematic to expect civil society organisations reliant on EU funding to prepare for the new post-Brexit landscape but not have the information for how to access new funding in six months time.

The advice also gives no further information for frontier workers, beyond the common travel area guidance, such as how to apply for a frontier worker document. This information is crucial for many on the border of the island of Ireland. It is the only land border the UK shares with the EU and one in which many live on one side and commute to the other daily. 

If civil society groups are to be prepared for the end of the transition period the UK Government needs to give a clearer picture of what is coming next. Bear in mind that this is all happening against the backdrop of the coronavirus crisis. It needs to have set up the new regulatory frameworks and bodies, such as the Office for Environmental Protection, introduce a new immigration system, and answer questions that still exist on the Northern Ireland Protocol. Organisations need better engagement and support long before the 31st December 2020.

Recommended Reading