Brexit: EU (Withdrawal) Bill suffers 15th defeat in House-of-Lords
UK Prime Minister Theresa May's government has suffered the 15th defeat in the House of Lords (also known as House of Peers) on the EU (Withdrawal) Bill after peers voted by a majority of 50 to form a body to enforce EU "environment standards" after Brexit. Pro-Brexit peers were angered by the latest defeat, accusing their colleagues of trying to wreck the legislation.
Withdrawal Bill to go back to House of Commons
The Bill will now go back to House of Commons, which could reject the various approved amendments. Conservative lawmaker Michael Lord said their scrutiny had shown the unelected chamber "at its worst". However, peers said they simply did their job of scrutinizing and revising legislation.
The Withdrawal Bill would repeal 1972 Act
The Withdrawal Bill is crucial to Britain's departure from the European Union. It would repeal the 1972 Act that made the country a member of EU and transferred four decades of its regulations onto the British statute books. The House of Commons passed the landmark bill by a majority of 29 earlier this year after weeks of debate and a damaging government defeat.
UK's final date of departure from EU: March 29, 2019
Britain adopted the March 29, 2019, date for Brexit when it activated Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, setting the clock ticking on a two-year countdown to its departure.
