Kemi Badenoch challenged over ‘massive climbdown’ on EU laws

[dutchman]

Business secretary questioned by Brexiter MPs, speaker and Labour after government scraps ‘sunset clause’



Kemi Badenoch has come under fire from furious Conservative backbenchers, the opposition and the Commons speaker after defending the government’s U-turn on retained EU laws.

The business secretary was challenged by Mark Francois, chair of the Tory Brexiter European Research Group (ERG), who asked why the government had performed “a massive climbdown on its own bill despite having such strong support from its backbenchers”.

“What on earth are you playing at?” he asked Badenoch, after her department last night ditched a promise to scrap up to 4,000 EU-era regulations by the end of the year.

Badenoch faced anger from a string of Brexiter MPs unhappy at the scrapping of the controversial “sunset clause”, which would have meant thousands of laws automatically facing the axe on 31 December.

The architect of that deadline, the former minister Jacob Rees-Mogg, accused the prime minister of breaking his word over the change in plans.

“Will she explain whether this abdication to the House of Lords has come about because of civil service idleness or a lack of ministerial drive?” asked Rees-Mogg in the Commons as as Badenoch appeared to answer an Urgent Question on the plans.

Badenoch, who insisted it was she and not Sunak who had decided to revoke about 600 retained EU laws, rather than the 4,000 pledged, replied: “No, I don’t think it has come out of any idleness. If anything, I would say the civil servants have been working feverishly on this.”

The Commons speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, criticised Badenoch’s decision to announce the changes in an article in the Telegraph and in a written ministerial statement rather than in person to MPs.

Badenoch said she was sorry the sequencing of the announcement was “not to your satisfaction”, prompting a furious reaction from Hoyle. “Who do you think you’re speaking to?” he asked.

Badenoch, a former Tory leadership hopeful who is thought to still harbour ambitions for the top job, has seen her Brexiter credentials take a pounding in the past 48 hours. Bill Cash, the chair of the European Scrutiny Committee, criticised her for failing three times to appear before his committee.

[dutchman]

There is no 'Brexit', never has been and never will be.

[rebbonk]

You are quite right, Dutchman. That we voted 'out' was against the wishes of those that rule over us. They have played the game their way, but the EU is rather like Hotel California. - You can check out, but you can never leave! Of course, we will be punished at some stage (more than we are currently being) for our audacity in wanting to leave!