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.
| Business of the House motion |
Second Reading
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| Ballot →
|
3 April 2019
|
Ballot →
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3 April 2019
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Aye
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Aye
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No
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No
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Abstentions
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Abstentions
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| Sources: CommonsVotes[3]
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Sources: CommonsVotes[6]
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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]
| List of Commons amendments to European Union Withdrawal (No. 5) Bill
|
| Amendment |
Name of proposer |
Purpose |
Status
|
| 13 |
Yvette Cooper |
Technical amendment to correct printing error |
Agreed[8]
|
| 14 |
Amendment to clarify references to European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 |
Agreed[9]
|
| 20 |
George Eustice |
To ensure that the Bill would not permit an extension of the Article 50 period later than 30 June 2019 |
Not called
|
| 21 |
To remove the requirement for the Prime Minister to put any counter-offer of an Article 50 extension date by the European Union to a debate and vote in Parliament |
Rejected.[10]
|
| 22 |
Steve Barclay |
To ensure that nothing in the Bill could rule out the Government extending Article 50 in a different way |
Rejected.[11]
|
| 1 |
Anne Main |
To ensure that the Bill would not permit an extension to the Article 50 period later than 22 May 2019 |
Rejected.[12]
|
| 6 |
Bill Cash |
To ensure that any extension is subject to the agreement of the devolved assemblies |
Not called
|
| NC4 |
An additional clause to the Bill that would have prevented Parliament from tabling amendments to any future motion under Section 1 of the Bill that change or suspend the standing orders of the House of Commons |
Rejected.[13]
|
| NC5 |
An additional clause to the Bill to ensure that any motion on extension be limited to no later than 22 May 2019 |
Not called
|
| NC7 |
An additional clause to the Bill to prevent an extension in the event of the United Kingdom taking part in the 2019 European Parliament election |
Not called
|
| NC13 |
Steve Barclay |
An additional clause to the Bill to ensure that any date limits in domestic legislation match the Article 50 extension date |
Agreed[14]
|
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.
| Third Reading
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| Ballot →
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3 April 2019
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Aye
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No
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Abstentions
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| Sources: CommonsVotes[15]
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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]
| List of Lords amendments to European Union Withdrawal (No. 5) Bill
|
| Amendment |
Name of proposer |
Purpose |
Status
|
| 1 |
Lord Rooker |
To ensure that the House of Commons was able to debate the Bill the next day |
Agreed[24]
|
| 2 |
To allow a motion extending Article 50 to be tabled on the day after Royal Assent |
Agreed[24]
|
| 3 |
To allow any Minister rather than just the Prime Minister to move the motion extending Article 50 |
Agreed[24]
|
| 4 |
Baroness Neville-Rolfe |
To place a restriction on the date of departure to not later than the end of FY 2019/20 |
Withdrawn[24]
|
| 5 |
Lord Goldsmith |
To remove the requirement for a motion to be put to the Commons
in the event that the European Council makes a proposal |
Agreed[25]
|
| 6 |
Baroness Deech |
Not Moved[26]
|
| 7 |
Lord Pannick |
Any extension to Article 50 cannot end before 22 May 2019,
unless any withdrawal agreement comes into force |
Agreed[27]
|
| 8 |
Baroness Noakes |
The Act ceases to have effect on the day of the UK's exit |
Withdrawn[28]
|
| Sources: Hansard[29]
|
| Clause 2
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| Ballot →
|
8 April 2019
|
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Content
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Not Content
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Abstentions
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| Sources: Hansard[30]
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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.
| List of Lords amendments to European Union Withdrawal (No. 5) Bill
|
| Amendment |
Original Lords
Amendment |
Purpose |
Status
|
| 1 |
1 |
To ensure that the House of Commons was able to debate the Bill the next day |
Agreed[34]
|
| 2 |
2 |
To allow a motion extending Article 50 to be tabled on the day after Royal Assent |
Agreed[34]
|
| 3 |
3 |
To allow any Minister rather than just the Prime Minister to move the motion extending Article 50 |
Agreed[34]
|
| 4 |
5 |
To remove the requirement for a motion to be put to the Commons in the event that the European Council makes a proposal |
Agreed[34]
|
| 5 |
7 |
Any extension to Article 50 cannot end before 22 May 2019, unless any withdrawal agreement comes into force |
Agreed[34]
|
| Amendment (a) to Amendment 5 |
Any extension to Article 50 cannot end after 22 May 2019, unless any withdrawal agreement comes into force |
Rejected[34]
|
| Lords Amendments 2 and 3 |
Amendment (a) to Lords Amendment 5 |
Lords Amendment 5
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| Ballot →
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8 April 2019
|
Ballot →
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8 April 2019
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Ballot →
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8 April 2019
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Aye
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Aye
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Aye
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No
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No
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No
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Abstentions
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Abstentions
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Abstentions
|
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| Sources: CommonsVotes[35]
|
Sources: CommonsVotes[36]
|
Sources: CommonsVotes[37]
|
Having been passed by both Houses of Parliament, the bill achieved Royal Assent later that evening.[38][39][40]
Motion under the Act
On 9 April 2019, the House of Commons debated a motion under the terms of the Act put forward by the Prime Minister, requesting approval for the UK to seek an extension to the Article 50 process to 30 June 2019.[41]
| Motion under section 1 to June 30
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| Ballot →
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9 April 2019
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Aye
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No
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Abstentions
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| Sources: CommonsVotes[42]
|
This vote passed with a large majority of 310 votes.[41]
