In the late hours of Monday, 13th March 2017 the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill was passed unamended by both Houses of Parliament and received Royal Assent from HM The Queen on Thursday, 16th March 2017 officially making it into law. As a result, the Prime Minister now has the authority to trigger Article 50, which is something she has always said she would do by 31st March.
The European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Act is a matter of process and is not about the terms of any such exit deal with the European Union. The Supreme Court clearly outlined that Parliament needed to vote to allow the PM to trigger Article 50 and that vote has now been won. The Supreme Court also made clear in its ruling that the bill to give the PM the authority to trigger Article 50 did not need to be detailed, and made no legal requirements for the bill to include provisions for binding negotiating terms and/or consent from devolved administrations. This now gives the Government the ability to negotiate for the UK’s best interests.
Although it is not often reported, a lot of work has been going on in Whitehall to prepare the country for the Brexit negotiations. For example, two new government departments have been created: the Department for Exiting the European Union and the Department for International Trade. The upcoming negotiations will cover a huge array of issues and as there is a two-year stopwatch from when Article 50 is triggered, it has been important for our politicians and civil servants to do as much as possible to be ready for the negotiations.