European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2019

United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to make provision in connection with the period for negotiations for withdrawing from the European Union.
Citation	2019 c. 16
Introduced by	Yvette Cooper and Sir Oliver Letwin (Commons) Baroness Hayter, Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Lords (Lords)
Territorial extent	United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent	8 April 2019
Commencement	8 April 2019
Repealed	23 January 2020
Other legislation
Repealed by	European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020
Relates to	European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 2) Act 2019
Status: Repealed
History of passage through Parliament
Text of statute as originally enacted

Part of a series of articles on
Brexit
Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union Glossary of terms
Background European Communities Act 1975 EC membership referendum UK rebate Bruges speech No. No. No. Maastricht Rebels Black Wednesday European Union (Amendment) Act 2008 European Union Act 2011 UK opt-outs from EU legislation Euroscepticism in the UK UK opinion polling on EU membership Campaigns for a referendum People's Pledge Labour for a Referendum Bloomberg speech In or Out 2013–14 EU (Referendum) Bill (unsuccessful) 2014 European Parliament election 2014 UK Parliament by-elections Clacton Heywood and Middleton Rochester and Strood 2015 UK general election 2015–16 EU membership renegotiation
2016 EU referendum EU Referendum Act (Gibraltar) EU Referendum (Date of Referendum etc.) Regulations EU Referendum (Conduct) Regulations Issues Endorsements Opinion polling UK Government pro-EU leaflet Campaigns Leave campaigns Vote Leave (official) Business for Britain Conservatives for Britain BeLeave Leave.EU Bpoplive The Freedom Association Better Off Out Grassroots Out Labour Leave Get Britain Out Bruges Group Campaign for an Independent Britain Brexit: The Movie Remain campaigns Britain Stronger in Europe (official) Labour In for Britain European Movement UK Britain in Europe British Influence Business for New Europe Nucleus Project Fear Outcome Results Causes for result International reactions Immediate aftermath 2016 Conservative Party election 2016 Labour Party election 2016 UKIP election Department for Exiting the EU Department for International Trade Allegations of unlawful campaigning Alleged Russian interference
Notice of withdrawal Article 50 process Miller case (Article 50) EU (Notification of Withdrawal) Act 2017 Brexit plan Repeal Bill plan 2017 UK general election
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Withdrawal agreement Brexit divorce bill Fish for finance Irish backstop No-deal Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol Northern Ireland Protocol Bill Windsor Framework
Legislation Withdrawal Act 2018 (Gibraltar) Nuclear Safeguards Act 2018 Cooper–Letwin Act Benn Act 2019 suspension of rebel Conservative MPs Public Vote Bill (not passed) Terms of Withdrawal Bills (not passed) Scottish EU Continuity Bill (blocked) Withdrawal Agreement Act (Gibraltar) Scottish EU Continuity Act Internal Market Act EU (Future Relationship) Act Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill
Impact Impact on the Irish border Good Friday Agreement Impact on the EU Economic effects Effects on Gibraltar Scientific cooperation Retained EU law 2021 Jersey dispute
EU–UK relations Relations pre- and post-Brexit EU–UK trade negotiation EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) Partnership Council Partnership Assembly Relations with EU member states Austria Belgium Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Akrotiri and Dhekelia Czech Republic Denmark Estonia France Germany Greece Hungary Ireland Ireland–UK border British–Irish Council North/South Ministerial Council Italy Lithuania Malta Netherlands Poland Portugal Romania Slovakia Spain Status of Gibraltar Gibraltar–Spain border Sweden Conjectured EEA membership
Opposition Post-referendum opinion polling New initiatives Change Britain More United Open Britain The New European Unite to Remain Led By Donkeys Revoke Article 50 petition Postcards from the 48% Proposed second Scottish independence referendum Calls for a second referendum People's Vote Britain for Europe European Movement UK For our Future's Sake Healthier IN the EU InFacts Open Britain Our Future Our Choice Scientists for EU Other organisations Best for Britain Bollocks to Brexit Change UK Liberal Democrats Right to Vote
Timeline Bloomberg speech Jan 2013 Referendum Bill blocked Jan 2014 European Parliament election May 2014 2015 general election May 2015 Renegotiation begins Jun 2015 Referendum Act passed Dec 2015 Renegotiation concluded Feb 2016 Referendum held Jun 2016 David Cameron resigns as PM Jul 2016 Theresa May becomes PM Jul 2016 Article 50 judgement Jan 2017 Brexit plan presented Feb 2017 Notification Act passed Mar 2017 Article 50 invoked Mar 2017 Repeal Bill plan presented Mar 2017 2017 general election Jun 2017 Brexit negotiations begin Jun 2017 Withdrawal Act passed Jun 2018 Chequers plan presented Jul 2018 Withdrawal agreement plan presented July 2018 Withdrawal agreement released Nov 2018 Scottish Continuity Bill blocked Dec 2018 Meaningful votes Jan–Mar 2019 Brexit delayed until 12 April Mar 2019 Cooper–Letwin Act passed Apr 2019 Brexit delayed until 31 October Apr 2019 European Parliament election May 2019 Theresa May resigns as PM Jul 2019 Boris Johnson becomes PM Jul 2019 Prorogation and annulment Aug–Sep 2019 Benn Act passed Sep 2019 Withdrawal agreement revised Oct 2019 Brexit delayed until 31 January Oct 2019 2019 general election Dec 2019 Agreement Act passed Jan 2020 UK leaves the European Union Jan 2020 Implementation period begins Jan 2020 UK–EU trade deal agreed Dec 2020 Future Relationship Act passed Dec 2020 Scottish Continuity Act passed Dec 2020 Implementation period ends Dec 2020 New EU–UK relationship begins Jan 2021 UK–EU trade deal ratified Apr 2021 Windsor Framework released Feb 2023 Windsor framework adopted Mar 2023
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The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2019, commonly referred to as the Cooper–Letwin Act, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that made provisions for extensions to the period defined under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union related to the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union. It was introduced to the House of Commons by Labour MP Yvette Cooper and Conservative MP Sir Oliver Letwin on 3 April 2019, in an unusual process where the Government of the United Kingdom did not have control over Commons business that day.

The Act was repealed on 23 January 2020 by the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020.^[1]

Provisions

Section 1 of the Act required the Government to allow Parliament to debate a motion to require the prime minister to seek an extension to the period in which the United Kingdom is to negotiate the terms of its withdrawal from the European Union ("Brexit") under Article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union. The motion must have been moved on the day the Act received royal assent or on the next day, so 8 or 9 April 2019. If Parliament passed the motion then the prime minister was legally obliged to comply with it and seek an extension to a date chosen by Parliament (although the extension must still be agreed to by the EU).

Section 2 streamlined the procedure for amending UK law to reflect the new date for "exit day", the date on which the UK was to leave the EU.

Legislative history

House of Commons First and Second Readings

The Act was originally introduced to the House of Commons as the European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 5) Bill on 3 April 2019, on a day when some of the normal standing orders of the House were suspended to prevent Government business taking precedence over business that other Members of Parliament might wish to undertake. As such, Sir Oliver Letwin tabled a motion which would allow MPs to undertake proceedings on the second, committee, and third reading of the Bill in one day. The motion was passed by one vote.^[2][3]

The UK government opposed the bill at all stages throughout its passing in the House of Commons and the House of Lords.^[4] The second reading passed by 5 votes,^[5][6] after closing remarks given by Steve Barclay, Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, making clear the Government's opposition to the Bill.

House of Commons Committee Stage

During the committee stage, a number of amendments were tabled for the Bill, of which four went to a Division:^[7]

House of Commons Third Reading

As there was no report stage, the House of Commons debated and voted on the third reading of the Bill after the committee stage.

The bill was accepted on its third reading by a difference of a single vote once again.^[16] The approved Cooper-Letwin bill having passed through the House of Commons subsequently passed the following day to the House of Lords.^[17]

House of Lords First and Second Readings

Having passed the House of Commons, the Bill was introduced into the House of Lords by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town the following day, 4 April 2019. The debate on the Bill was preceded by Lady Hayter introducing a motion to compress the process for having the legislation passed into a single day's sitting through the suspension of two of the House's Standing Orders:^[18]

• Standing Order 46 (No two stages of a Bill to be taken on one day) be dispensed with to allow the European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 5) Bill to be taken through all its stages this day.
• Standing Order 39 (Order of Business) be dispensed with to enable that Bill to be considered after the motions on Economic Affairs Committee reports in the name of Lord Forsyth of Drumlean.

However, a number of Conservative Party peers laid down motions to amend the original business motion, which was regarded as a filibuster attempt, with the tacit approval of the Government, to prevent the Bill passing through the House.^[19][20] Despite a total of seven motions put forward to amend Baroness Hayter's original business motion, which had to be debated and voted on, the original motion eventually passed allowing the Bill to be introduced at First Reading and passed to Second Reading the same day.^[21]

However, the Second Reading debate did not begin until after 7.00pm that night, which led it not being able to pass through all stages on the same day, with instead the Bill passing Second Reading to the Committee Stage to be taken up the following Monday.^[22]

House of Lords Committee and Report Stages

Committee Stage began on the afternoon of 8 April 2019 with a total of 8 proposed amendments, but only a single division on whether Clause 2 of the Bill ("Procedure for ensuring domestic legislation matches Article 50 extension") should remain:^[23]

Following the Committee Stage, there was an official Report Stage, noting merely that the report on the Bill had been received.^[31]

House of Lords Third Reading

With the Committee and Report Stages completed, the Bill moved to Third Reading, when it was passed without a vote and returned to the House of Commons.^[32][33]

Commons vote on Lords amendments and Royal Assent

Having passed through the House of Lords, the Bill returned to the House of Commons for a vote on the five amendments passed by the Upper House late on 8 April. Amendments 1 and 4 were agreed to, while Amendments 2, 3 and 5 were voted on in a division, as was a new amendment placed by Sir William Cash.