Thank you to those who have drawn my attention to the War on Want Campaign and expressed concerns about the protection of trade and workers’ rights post Brexit Negotiations.
It is very important that such important decisions are debated and I am pleased that Ministers have said Parliament will have the fullest possible opportunity to scrutinise Brexit legislation
I fully recognise the importance of strong workers’ rights. That is why I am glad that the Prime Minister has said that workers’ rights will be fully protected and maintained. A Great Repeal Bill will convert current EU law into domestic law, wherever practical. This will guarantee existing workers’ legal rights as set out in EU legislation and it will provide certainty to the UK workforce.
On human rights, the UK signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to guarantee human rights long before it joined the EU. Strong workers’ rights similarly existed in this country long before the UK became a member of the EU, and the Prime Minister has promised to protect workers’ rights in full. Indeed, for most of our history, human rights have been protected very much better in the UK than elsewhere in Europe or the world.
As the Secretary of State for International Trade has made clear, it has never been the UK’s approach to enter agreements that sacrifice the Government’s right to regulate public services. Ministers take the UK’s environmental obligations very seriously, and the UK will continue to be bound by around 30 international agreements and treaties when it leaves the EU.
