Grieve: A lot is at stake for the rule of law
The Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law has put together a high-powered group of 26 legal, constitutional and other experts under the chairmanship of former Attorney General Dominic Grieve QC MP to consider the implications of the EU (Withdrawal) Bill for the rule of law.
The expert working group on the EU (Withdrawal) Bill and the rule of law, set up in partnership with University College London’s Constitution Unit, will meet for the first time at Westminster today.
Members include former Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge, Sir Paul Jenkins, the former head of the Government Legal Service, and Lord Lisvane, former clerk of the House of Commons.
The group’s stated purpose is “to generate informed discussion about the most significant rule of law issues raised by the bill in order to inform debates about it, and how it could be improved, in Parliament and among the wider public”.
Mr Grieve said: “A lot is at stake for the rule of law as Parliament considers the bill, which aims both to give effect to the result of the Brexit referendum and to provide the legal continuity which individuals and businesses so badly need.
“The bill must not create uncertainty about what EU law applies and how it is to be interpreted, nor should it hand sweeping powers to the government to change the law in future without adequate parliamentary scrutiny.”
Murray Hunt, director of the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law, added: “The enormous legal uncertainty Brexit is causing for both people and businesses is a serious test of our institutions’ commitment to the rule of law.”
Other members include: David Anderson QC, former independent reviewer of terrorism legislation; Andrea Coomber, director of JUSTICE, Paul Hardy, Brexit director of DLA Piper; Jo Hickman, director of the Public Law Project; Sir Stephen Laws QC, former First Parliamentary Counsel; Lord Norton of Louth, professor of government at Hull University and former chair of House of Lords constitution committee; Sir Paul Silk, former clerk to the National Assembly for Wales; and Martha Spurrier, director of Liberty.
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