The House of Lords Constitution Committee has published a short report on the Immigration and Social Security Co-Ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill.
The Bill serves two main purposes: to end free movement under EU law and to provide for the amendment of retained EU law governing social security coordination. The Bill is of significant importance for the way in which it removes the UK from free movement (one of the main structures of the EU) and has potential implications for EEA citizens in the UK.
The Bill effectively changes significant areas of immigration law into secondary legislation, reducing the parliamentary scrutiny that will be required for any future amendment or repeal. Concerns have also been raised that the Bill contains broad provisions worded in vague or subjective terms. The Committee has said the Government’s seeking of such broad and permissive powers regarding freedom of movement is “constitutionally unacceptable”.
The report notes that immigration is a complicated area of law which has been repeatedly legislated for in recent years. The Committee has warned that the Bill risks making “a complex area of law even more difficult to navigate and understand for practitoners and individuals alike”.
The Committee has previously recommended that immigration law be consolidated. This recommendation it strongly reiterated in its report as the Committee is of the view that consolidation will be even more urgent following the passage of the Bill. The report concludes that there are significant issues surrounding Brexit legislation that still need to be addressed.
Gherson has extensive experience with all aspects of UK immigration law. Should you wish to discuss your own immigration matters, please do not hesitate to contact us.
The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please don’t hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.
©Gherson 2020
Solicitor in our Corporate & Complex Teams