Acts of Parliament

Acts of Parliament

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UK withdrawal from the EU

The proponents of the European Union EU exit argue that it is easy for the UK to withdraw from the EU, following the enactment of the European Communities Act 1972 (the Lisbon Treaty). The act allows the parties to withdraw EU membership voluntarily just by informing the European Council (EC) and after engaging in a series of negotiations with the EC. Although the Parliament of the UK can pass an Act that would lead the UK to withdraw from the EU, the move may have severe social, political and economic impacts on the UK. The Parliament of the UK has been reluctant to initiate the withdrawal since it is difficult to predict the implications of the withdrawal (Dickson & Eleftheriadis, 2012).

Article 50 (1) of the Lisbon Treaty stipulates that any party can request withdrawal from the EU, in accordance with its own constitution. Section 2 of the article stipulates that any party that decides to exit from the EU should notify the EC.  In response, the EC shall engage in a series of negotiations with the withdrawing party and conclude the agreement. The process of withdrawal should also adhere to the Article 218(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The article requires the withdrawal negotiation be concluded by the EC after obtaining the consent from the EU (Dickson & Eleftheriadis, 2012). Article 50 (3) stipulates that the EU treaties cease to apply to the withdrawing party immediately or two years after the conclusion of the withdrawal agreement, unless the withdrawing state and the EC agree to extend the treaties. It is, therefore, easy for the UK to be granted a withdraw permission from the EU (Dickson & Eleftheriadis, 2012).

Although the law is clear about the withdrawal from the EU, it would not b.............