Written question asked by Lord Redwood (Conservative) on Thursday, 2 March 2023, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 6 March 2023. It was answered by Leo Docherty (Conservative) on Friday, 10 March 2023 on behalf of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

EU Law: Northern Ireland

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Windsor Framework, published on 27 February 2023, CP 806, how many pages of EU law and regulation will apply to Northern Ireland under that agreement.

Answer: Only the absolute minimum (less than 3 percent) of EU law continues to apply in Northern Ireland, to avoid a hard border and maintain Northern Ireland's unique access to the EU market, alongside its unfettered access to the UK internal market. Under the Windsor Framework, more than 1,700 pages of EU law will be disapplied for UK internal trade. The rules that are disapplied are set out in the legal instruments giving effect to the Windsor Framework. It will be for elected representatives in NI to determine whether those rules should apply at all in 2024 under the democratic consent mechanism, and where those rules are amended in the future they will be subject to the democratic safeguard in the Stormont Brake.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 156910
Session: 2022-23
Related items: The Windsor Framework: a new way forward
Monday, 27 February 2023
Command papers
House of Lords
House of Commons
Subjects: EU law Northern Ireland Windsor Framework
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk