The impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on the regulation of pesticides in the UK

The briefing argues that the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill could weaken UK pesticide regulation by granting ministers broad powers to revoke or amend EU-derived laws via secondary legislation with limited scrutiny. It highlights risks such as the 'sunset' clause causing accidental law expiry and the potential shift from a 'hazard-based' to a 'risk-based' authorisation approach. Specifically, the document warns that the Bill could be used to relax restrictions on neonicotinoids, contradicting the UK's 25 Year Environment Plan and the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement.

• The REUL Bill introduces an automatic 'sunset' provision where any retained EU law not modified, saved, or replaced by 31 December 2023 will expire.
• The Bill allows ministers to amend or revoke retained EU law through secondary legislation, which the author claims provides significantly less parliamentary scrutiny than primary legislation.
• Under Clause 15(5), replacement legislation must not increase the 'regulatory burden', which the document argues effectively prevents ministers from using the Bill to strengthen environmental protections.
• The author identifies several ways the Bill could be used to reduce the regulatory burden, including shifting from a 'hazard-based approach' to a 'risk-based approach' for pesticide authorisation, reducing required safety information from applicants, and weakening the National Action Plan for the Sustainable Use of Pesticides.
• The Bill may facilitate the relaxation of restrictions on neonicotinoids (specifically clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam), which would contradict the UK's 25 Year Environment Plan and potentially breach the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA).
• The expedited timeline for reviewing pesticide laws by the end of 2023 is described as unrealistic and likely to cause business uncertainty or the accidental loss of critical regulations.

APA

ClientEarth (2022). The impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on the regulation of pesticides in the UK. https://www.clientearth.org/media/gtzabb1y/clientearth_the-impact-of-the-reul-bill-on-the-regulation-of-pesticides_1-12-2022_updated.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. The impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on the regulation of pesticides in the UK. 2022. https://www.clientearth.org/media/gtzabb1y/clientearth_the-impact-of-the-reul-bill-on-the-regulation-of-pesticides_1-12-2022_updated.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=ClientEarth |title=The impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on the regulation of pesticides in the UK |date=December 2022 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/gtzabb1y/clientearth_the-impact-of-the-reul-bill-on-the-regulation-of-pesticides_1-12-2022_updated.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clientearth2022impact, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{The impact of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill on the regulation of pesticides in the UK}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2022}, month = dec, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/gtzabb1y/clientearth_the-impact-of-the-reul-bill-on-the-regulation-of-pesticides_1-12-2022_updated.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }