Human rights organisations have urged US president-elect Joe Biden to help protect the Good Friday Agreement as the UK reaches the end of the Brexit transition period. A briefing paper signed by 14 organisations north and south of the border was sent to Biden's transition team, in particular to thos
Brexit
Proposed restrictions on post-Brexit VAT refunds for goods purchased in Ireland by visitors from Great Britain are set to be relaxed in a bid to support Irish retailers. Legislation currently being considered by the Oireachtas would have allowed visitors from Great Britain, after the UK becomes a "t
Thousands of "Brexit refugee" solicitors based in England and Wales who have enrolled in Ireland since 2016 will be denied practising certificates, the Law Society of Ireland has said. Nearly 4,000 solicitors in England and Wales have joined the Irish roll since the EU referendum, apparently in a bi
A fresh legal challenge will see judges in Belfast asked to rule on whether Prime Minister Boris Johnson acted in bad faith and for improper purpose in relation to Brexit. An anonymous litigant is seeking a declaration that the prime minister's decision to sign the Withdrawal Agreement and Northern
Daniel Wincott, Blackwell professor of law and society at the University of Cardiff, explores the impact of Brexit on devolution across the UK. Brexit has exposed the underdeveloped and fragile aspects of devolution in the UK. Devolved governments’ relationships with London are strained. The a
It could take a year to extradite criminal suspects from Ireland to the UK and vice versa after the Brexit transition period comes to an end, the chief constable of the PSNI has warned. Giving evidence to Westminster's Northern Ireland affairs committee, chief constable Simon Byrne said it would tak
The UK has missed its first deadline to respond to infringement proceedings brought by the European Commission for breaching its obligations under the Brexit deal. A letter of formal notice was sent to the UK at the start of October for a response by the end of the month, but the UK has not responde
The UK government's controversial Internal Market Bill has been introduced to force negotiations, a Dáil committee has heard.
The European Commission has launched infringement proceedings against the UK for breaching its obligations under the Brexit deal. A letter of formal notice has been sent to the UK for a response by the end of October, after which the Commission may issue a reasoned opinion.
The Scottish government has called on MSPs to reject legislative consent for the United Kingdom Internal Market Bill, which it says will erode the powers of the Scottish Parliament. A legislative consent memorandum (LCM) lodged with Holyrood by Scotland's Constitutional Relations Secretary Michael R
Government ministers have approved plans to legislate for the recognition of UK divorces after expiry of the Brexit transition period. Justice Minister Helen McEntee said: "I am conscious that in the absence of an agreement to the contrary, EU law will no longer apply to legal proceedings involving
Lord Keen of Elie QC has been praised for his honourable resignation this week by senior legal figures who have predicted that the UK government will have "difficulty" in replacing him. Lord Keen left his post after a debacle that arose over a government bill. His erstwhile colleagues now
The Advocate General for Scotland, Lord Keen of Elie QC, has resigned following the UK government’s U-turn on the Northern Ireland part of the Brexit deal. The controversial UK Internal Market Bill allows ministers to “disapply” rules agreed over the goods that cross between Britai
Former Attorney General Geoffrey Cox QC has threatened to rebel in a crucial government vote after calling it "unconscionable" for the UK to break its treaty commitment to the EU. Last week, Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis told MPs that provisions in the Internal Market Bill would "break in
Professor Conor Gearty explores the background to the UK government's threat to depart from its long-standing advocacy of ‘the rule of law’ in international affairs. The European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 declared itself a measure ‘to implement, and make other provision