Key Facts

• The amendments are aimed at ensuring frictionless intra-UK trade.
• Common frameworks will remain a voluntary process.
• Further discussions on common frameworks are expected in the new year.
• The amendments place common frameworks on the face of the Bill.
• Amendments 8P to 8S allow for excluding specific areas of divergence based on consensus between UK Governments and relevant parties.
• Parts 1 and 2 of the Bill require consent from devolved Administrations, with a fallback option if not obtained within a month.
• Amendments to clauses 10 and 17 allow for agreements arising from common frameworks to be excluded from market principles.
• A definition of a common framework agreement has been included in the Bill.
• The Competition and Markets Authority and the Office for the Internal Market are required to report on the interaction between market access principles and common framework agreements.
• The Bill has been amended multiple times, leading to confusion about its legal certainty.
• The Secretary of State can make regulations subject to affirmative resolution under clause 10(2) and clause 17.
• The Bill may end up in courts due to ambiguity in its provisions.
• The Bill is seen as an improvement over the initial legislation introduced in autumn.
• Concerns about the transparency of the Office for the Internal Market's role in future trade deals are raised.
• There are doubts about the legislative value of the Bill if a trade deal with the EU is reached.
• Clauses 10 and 17 allow for discretion to exclude agreements from market access principles.
• The Secretary of State can make decisions based on consensus in the common frameworks programme.
• The Office for the Internal Market (OIM) will not be a decision-maker but will have flexibility to investigate issues.
• The Minister acknowledges ongoing common framework discussions.
• The Minister thanks Members who have engaged with the Bill over recent weeks.
• The amendments aim to provide certainty for businesses and create jobs.