Trade Tuesday - Caught between a rock and a hard place: The long shadow of Brexit on trade

Last week, Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch announced that six hundred of the European Union (EU) laws will not be scrapped as part of the government’s Retained EU Law Bill. Consequently, selected EU-based laws will remain in the UK law statute book despite previous promises from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to review or repeal EU law in his first 100 days. 

After pushing the Retained EU Law Bill through the House of Commons, why has the UK Government sought to retain a selection of EU laws?  

Much of this is explained in my colleague’s piece from last week. The political fallout from this decision has been met with a barrage of criticism from staunch supporters of the UK’s exit from the EU, having been regarded as a key part of the UK gaining a competitive edge over the EU in trade. This has been highlighted by the former leader of the UK Independence Party, Nigel Farage, who proclaimed “Brexit has failed”. Furthermore, Senior Tory backbencher Bill Cash stated that “The government’s Retained EU Law bill can now no longer be argued to lighten the regulatory burden for business”.  

The Labour Party has also been keen to highlight division in the Conservative Party’s ranks, particularly on Brexit, accusing the government of “rescuing this sinking ship of a bill”. 

Away from the rhetoric of the Brexit debate, for Badenoch, this can be considered not a surrendering of her Brexit credentials, but more of an opportunity for her to showcase a pragmatic, business-friendly approach to politics. She argued that this move was more effective than starting from scratch and reforming primary legislation.  

This fits with the missions she outlined when she took over as Secretary of State for Business and Trade, of being targeted to remove trade barriers for businesses. And choosing to keep some EU laws, with an eye to gradually phase them out, was described by British Commerce’s William Bain as the government officially listening to business.  

While this may cause Brexit loyalists to question Badenoch’s Brexit credentials many consider this symbolic of her commitment to implementing deliverable policies and making a difference rather than making undeliverable promises.  

However, in the coming months as the Conservative Party builds up its credentials on the path to the next general election, the managerial delivery mode of the current administration will be challenged on how much vision it can show and sell to the electorate.  

Following off the heels of Boris’ Freedom Bill rhetoric, it’s up to businesses who conduct international trade to speak up and endorse this steady-as-she-goes approach, or advocate for further EU legislation which will swiftly need removing.