“The European Commission decided this morning to send a notification to the British Government and this is the first step in an infringement procedure” against the United Kingdom, announced the president of the community executive, Ursula von der Leyen, in a statement to the press in Brussels.
Brussels thus passes from the threat to taking legal action after having set a deadline until the end of September for London to withdraw the most controversial parts of this proposed law, which did not happen.
It is the interpretation of the Community executive that the United Kingdom is in breach of its obligations under the Withdrawal Agreement and international law.
On Tuesday, British MPs passed this controversial bill by 340 votes in favor and 256 against, ending the process in the House of Commons and paving the way for consideration by the House of Lords (upper house of parliament) in the coming weeks.
Aimed at replacing European standards with rules for trade between the different regions of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) after leaving the EU, the legislation gives the British executive powers to ignore clauses that are in the Wake up.
At issue are issues such as the filing of export declarations or customs controls between the British province of Northern Ireland and Great Britain, the island where England, Scotland and Wales are located.
“As you know, we asked our British friends to remove the problem parts of the proposed Internal Market law by the end of September. This proposed law, in its nature, violates the principle of good faith explained in the Withdrawal Agreement and, if adopted as it stands, will be in total contradiction with the Ireland / Northern Ireland Protocol “, justified Ursula von der Leyen.
“Formal notification [hoje enviada] invites the British Government to disclose its positions within a month and, in addition, the Commission will continue to work hard for the full implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement “, he added. “We respect our commitments”.
According to the Commission, Article 5 of the Withdrawal Agreement provides that “the European Union and the United Kingdom shall take all appropriate measures to ensure the performance of the obligations arising from the Withdrawal Agreement and that they refrain from taking any action likely to to jeopardize the achievement of these objectives. Both parties are bound by the obligation to cooperate in good faith in the fulfillment of the missions resulting from the Withdrawal Agreement “.
The Withdrawal Agreement also provides that, during the transitional period, the “Court of Justice of the European Union has jurisdiction and the Commission has the powers conferred on them by Union law in relation to the United Kingdom, in particular with regard to interpretation and application of the said Agreement “.
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