An EU deadline for the government to remove sections of the Internal Market Bill expired on Wednesday.
The "letter of formal notice" could eventually lead to a court case against the UK at the European Court of Justice, the EU's top court.
But the EU has not walked away from talks over a post-Brexit trade deal.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the UK would have until the end of November to respond to the EU's concerns over the draft legislation.
UK-EU trade talks are continuing in Brussels this week. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said both sides should "move on" if a deal was not reached by mid-October
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La Comisión Europea ha enviado este jueves al Gobierno británico una carta de notificación formal "por incumplimiento de sus obligaciones en virtud del Acuerdo de Retirada". Se trata del primer paso de un "proceso formal de infracción contra el Reino Unido", según especifica el organismo comunitario en un comunicado.
ReplyDeleteSegún la UE, el proyecto de ley del Mercado Interior del Reino Unido, presentado por el Gobierno británico el pasado 9 de septiembre, de aprobarse, "violaría flagrantemente el Protocolo sobre Irlanda e Irlanda del Norte", puesto que permitiría ignorar algunas de las disposiciones sustantivas del Acuerdo de Retirada.
Además, desde la institución europea se afirma que algunos representantes del Gobierno del Reino Unido han reconocido esta violación, "afirmando que su propósito era permitirle apartarse de manera permanente de las obligaciones derivadas del Protocolo". Asimismo, se denuncian que a pesar de las solicitudes de la Unión Europa, el Ejecutivo británico no ha retirado las partes contenciosas del proyecto de ley.
The EU has activated a legal process against the UK after it failed to amend its controversial ‘Internal Market Bill’ which Brussels considers inconsistent with the previously agreed Brexit withdrawal agreement.
DeleteEuropean Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday that Brussels had sent a formal letter of notice to the UK and that London had until the end of September to remove the “problematic parts” of its draft Internal Market Bill, including the part on the Irish border issue.
This draft bill is by its very nature a breach of the obligation of good faith laid down in the Withdrawal Agreement. Moreover, if adopted as is, it will be in full contradiction to the Protocol on Northern Ireland.
“The deadline lapsed yesterday,” von der Leyen said, explaining that the letter of formal notice to the British government was the first step in launching the infringement procedure.
“The Commission will continue to work hard towards the full and timely implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement. We stand by our commitments,” she said.
The UK government now has a month to reply to the complaint. The EU will then assess Britain’s arguments once more and may ask it to amend the bill again. If London refuses again, the EU could sue the UK at the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice.