Trade Bill — International Trade Agreements and Treaties — 9 Feb 2021 at 17:34

The majority of MPs voted to require international trade agreements to be consistent with maintaining the United Kingdom's publicly-funded clinical healthcare services and maintaining the United Kingdom's levels of legal protection for human, animal or plant life or health, the environment, employment and labour, data and children and vulnerable adults online.

MPs were considering the Trade Bill.^[1][2]

The amendments supported by the majority of MPs in this vote were:

• Amendments (a) to (c) proposed in lieu of Lords amendment 6B

Amendments (a) to (c) stated:

• (a)
• Page 2, line 23, at end insert—
• “(4A) If regulations under subsection (1) contain provision about healthcare services, the provision must be consistent with maintaining UK publicly-funded clinical healthcare services.
• (4B) If regulations under subsection (1) contain provision in any of the areas listed in subsection (4C), the provision must be consistent with maintaining UK levels of statutory protection in that area. (4C) The areas referred to in subsection (4B) are—
• (a) the protection of human, animal or plant life or health;
• (b) animal welfare;
• (c) environmental protection;
• (d) employment and labour;
• (e) data protection;
• (f) the protection of children and vulnerable adults online.

This impacted Clause 2 of the Bill^[4] and required regulations implementing international trade agreements to be consistent with maintaining UK publicly-funded clinical healthcare services and maintaining UK legal protection for human, animal or plant life or health, the environment, employment and labour, data and children and vulnerable adults online.

• (b)
• Page 2, line 41, at end insert—
• “(9) In this section— “UK publicly-funded clinical healthcare services” means publicly-funded clinical healthcare services provided in the United Kingdom, or in the part of the United Kingdom in which the regulations have effect, on the date on which a draft of the regulations is laid;
• “UK levels of statutory protection” means levels of protection provided by or under—
• (a) primary legislation,
• (b) subordinate legislation, or
• (c) retained direct EU legislation, which has effect in the United Kingdom, or in the part of the United Kingdom in which the regulations have effect, on the date on which a draft of the regulations is laid.”

This provides definitions of terms used in amendment (a)

• (c)
• Page 3, line 40, at end insert—
• “(2A) In this Part a reference to a draft of regulations being laid is a reference to a draft of the regulations, or a draft of the instrument containing the regulations, being laid before—
• (a) each House of Parliament, in the case of regulations to which paragraph 4(1) or 5 of Schedule 2 applies;
• (b) the Scottish Parliament, in the case of regulations to which paragraph 4(2) of Schedule 2 applies;
• (c) Senedd Cymru, in the case of regulations to which paragraph 4(3) of Schedule 2 applies;
• (d) the Northern Ireland Assembly, in the case of regulations to which paragraph 4(4) of Schedule 2 applies.”

This impacts Clause 4 of the Bill^[4] which covers interpretation and relates to the interpretation of a term used in amendment (b).

• [1] Parliament's webpage on the Trade Bill, Parliament.uk
• [2] Explanatory notes to the Trade Bill, 18 January 2021, Parliament.uk
• [3] Amendment paper for consideration of the Trade Bill, 9 February 2021, Parliament.uk
• [4] Trade Bill as of 21 July 2021, Parliament.uk

Debate in Parliament |