MSPs seek views on EU law continuity bill

MSPs on two Holyrood committees are currently seeking views on the Scottish Government's UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Bill, as they begin their stage 1 scrutiny.

The bill's main purposes are:

• to allow Scots law to keep pace with EU law in devolved areas, where appropriate;
• to ensure that there continue to be guiding principles on the environment in Scotland, and to establish an environmental governance body, Environmental Standards Scotland;
• to continue the role and functions of the European institutions in ensuring the complete and effective implementation of environmental law.

The Finance & Constitution Committee (FCC), the lead committee on the bill, will focus on the constitutional aspects of the bill, while the Environment, Climate Change & Land Reform Committee (ECCLRC) as secondary committee will focus on the environmental policy aspects.

Both have issued calls for evidence: the FCC's, which closes on 7 August 2020, can be viewed here, and the ECCLRC's, which closes on 31 July 2020, can be viewed here.

Among the matters to be canvassed are:

• the implications of the keeping pace power in the bill potentially leading to substantial policy divergence with the rest of the UK following the end of the Brexit transition period;
• the proposals for the Scottish Government to voluntarily maintain regulatory alignment with EU law using secondary rather than primary legislation;
• the implications of the UK and devolved governments no longer having a formal role in influencing the EU policy making process;
• any constraints which may affect the Scottish Ministers’ ability to use the keeping pace power in the ways envisaged;
• the need for clearly defined criteria to apply to assessing whether or not to replicate any particular EU law into domestic law;
  
• whether the four environmental principles are the right choice and whether other principles or high-level objectives should be included;
• the limit on the application of these principles and whether they should extend to all areas of policy and regulation;
• and generally, the adequacy of the impact assessments and statements including on sustainable development, equalities and human rights, and the costs associated with the provisions.