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Lords EU exit regulations: 6 February

7 February 2019

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The House of Lords examined 11 statutory instruments preparing for Brexit on Wednesday 6 February.

A statutory instrument (SI), a type of secondary legislation, is a law created under powers given by an Act of Parliament. It is used to fill in the details of Acts (primary legislation).

The proposed SIs make changes to laws on:

1. Copyright and patents
2. Television broadcasting and on-demand services
3. Employment rights
4. Registration of fishing boats and sea fishing offences
5. Veterinary surgeons
6. Farriers

The SIs examined on Wednesday 6 February are all made under the EU (Withdrawal) Act 2018, and are changes to the law to be made in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a withdrawal agreement.

All these SIs are made under the draft affirmative procedure, meaning they needed to be approved by Parliament before they could be made (signed into law) and brought into effect as law. Draft affirmative SIs can be stopped if either House votes against the government's motion calling for the SI to be approved.

Lords scrutiny

The House of Lords Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (SLSC) examines every SI, including all EU Exit SIs. It publishes reports drawing members' attention to SIs.

Further information

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