domingo, 29 de maio de 2022

Boris Johnson plans bonfire of EU laws to try and appease rebellious Tory backbenchers after Partygate

 


Boris Johnson plans bonfire of EU laws to try and appease rebellious Tory backbenchers after Partygate

 

EXCLUSIVE Ministers are drawing up a list of regulations to be repealed once the Brexit Freedoms Bill becomes law later this year

 

By Hugo Gye

Political Editor

May 29, 2022 6:49 pm(Updated 6:50 pm)

https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/boris-johnson-plans-bonfire-eu-laws-appease-rebellious-tory-backbenchers-partygate-1657773

 

Dozens of EU laws are set to be repealed this year as Boris Johnson seeks to win back the support of Conservative MPs who worry that the Government is drifting in the wake of “Partygate”.

 

The Prime Minister is battling to turn around his flagging poll ratings and persuade Leave voters that he is making the most out of the opportunities presented by Brexit.

 

This week Mr Johnson will formally announce plans to allow all goods to be sold in imperial measures instead of metric, in a move derided by critics as “nostalgia”.

 

But Cabinet ministers are drawing up a raft of further-reaching changes to convince the public that leaving the EU will allow Britain to overhaul its regulatory regime and out-compete European countries.

 

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the minister for Brexit opportunities, is leading the efforts alongside the Remain-voting innovation minister George Freeman.

 

The list of regulations to be repealed will be announced alongside the Brexit Freedoms Bill, a piece of legislation promised in the Queen’s Speech which will speed up the process for amending or scrapping laws that originated from the EU.

 

The bill will mean that Parliament does not need to pass a new law in order to change “retained” EU legislation; instead, ministers will be able to table motions which do not require debate and only go to a full vote if a critical mass of MPs object to them.

 

A source told i: “We realised it would be a political missed opportunity if we did not make it clear to our MPs and our voters that we are quickly taking advantage of the freedoms available to us.”

 

The initiative will be a chance to show “radical thinking” at a time when the Tories are being accused of lacking firm values, they added.

 

The Government is setting up a website listing more than 1,400 laws which originated in the EU and incorporated into British statute before Brexit, in a move designed to demonstrate to the public how much UK law was drafted by Brussels.

 

The exact details of the regulations to be repealed has yet to be decided but the bulk are likely to be related to the environment, workplaces, transport, tax and health and safety, according to those involved.

 

Ministers have been at loggerheads with senior civil servants over how far to go with the repeal plans. An insider said: “It is one of those which people on the political side are rather more enthusiastic about than people on the official side. You get ministers saying, ‘My officials have said we can’t do this, but…'”

 

In the coming days the Government will formally announce plans to allow traders to use imperial weights and measures such as pounds and inches for all products.

 

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said: “There are sectors out there – I know people out there in my constituency, the market traders and vegetable traders as well as some of the pubs – which will be pleased to be able to go back to those imperial measurements.”

 

But Labour MP Angela Eagle accused ministers of “attempting to weaponise nostalgia for a time few can remember and even fewer wish to return to”, while Tory backbencher Alicia Kearns said: “Not one constituent, ever, has asked for this.”

 

Laws which could be scrapped

Encouraging drones

The use of drones is illegal in almost all cases where the operator cannot see the vehicle they are flying. Relaxing this legislation could allow companies to use drones for deliveries and for spraying fields with pesticide, although it would raise concerns about the risk of crashes.

 

New animal feed

Some farmers would like the right to add vitamins and amino acids to the food they feed their livestock, which is currently restricted. Tory MPs have called on the Government to allow insect protein to be fed to pigs and chickens too.

 

Lighter regulations for small banks

A new “graduated regime” of regulation for the finance sector could encourage start-up banks which would be subject to only a light touch from regulators, with the obligations increasing as companies grow larger.

 

Clinical trials data

Allowing researchers and companies to share more data about patients is a possible way of speeding up clinical trials of new drugs which some Brexiteers believe will boost the UK’s scientific expertise compared to the EU.

 

New energy tariffs

The rules governing how energy companies deal with their customers could be relaxed to let firms offer a wider range of tariffs intended to better align households’ costs with their heating and electricity needs, while encouraging the drive for net zero carbon emissions.

 

Medical AI

Many believe that artificial intelligence will inevitably become increasingly important in medical devices. Britain’s legislation could be updated to anticipate the regulatory problems this could cause.

 

Ports bureaucracy

Britain’s ports currently need to fulfil a number of transparency requirements which increase their administrative costs and which they argue are not needed in the UK, as opposed to the EU where large state-owned ports remain the norm.

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