European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020

39 Interpretation U.K.

(1) In this Act—

• “devolved authority” means—

  (a)

  the Scottish Ministers,

  (b)

  the Welsh Ministers, or

  (c)

  a Northern Ireland department;

• “EEA EFTA separation agreement” means (as modified from time to time in accordance with any provision of it) the Agreement on arrangements between Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein, the Kingdom of Norway and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, the EEA Agreement and other agreements applicable between the United Kingdom and the EEA EFTA States by virtue of the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union;

• “enactment” means an enactment whenever passed or made and includes—

  (a)

  an enactment contained in any Order in Council, order, rules, regulations, scheme, warrant, byelaw or other instrument made under an Act of Parliament,

  (b)

  an enactment contained in any Order in Council made in exercise of Her Majesty's Prerogative,

  (c)

  an enactment contained in, or in an instrument made under, an Act of the Scottish Parliament,

  (d)

  an enactment contained in, or in an instrument made under, a Measure or Act of the National Assembly for Wales,

  (e)

  an enactment contained in, or in an instrument made under, Northern Ireland legislation,

  (f)

  an enactment contained in any instrument made by a member of the Scottish Government, the Welsh Ministers, the First Minister for Wales, the Counsel General to the Welsh Government, a Northern Ireland Minister, the First Minister in Northern Ireland, the deputy First Minister in Northern Ireland or a Northern Ireland department in exercise of prerogative or other executive functions of Her Majesty which are exercisable by such a person on behalf of Her Majesty,

  (g)

  an enactment contained in, or in an instrument made under, a Measure of the Church Assembly or of the General Synod of the Church of England, and

  (h)

  any retained direct EU legislation;

• “IP completion day” means 31 December 2020 at 11.00 p.m (and see subsections (2) to (5));

• “Minister of the Crown” has the same meaning as in the Ministers of the Crown Act 1975 and also includes the Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs;

• “modify” includes amend, repeal or revoke (and related expressions are to be read accordingly);

• “primary legislation” means—

  (a)

  an Act of Parliament,

  (b)

  an Act of the Scottish Parliament,

  (c)

  a Measure or Act of the National Assembly for Wales, or

  (d)

  Northern Ireland legislation;

• “subordinate legislation” means any Order in Council, order, rules, regulations, scheme, warrant, byelaw or other instrument made under any primary legislation;

• “Swiss citizens' rights agreement” means (as modified from time to time in accordance with any provision of it) the Agreement signed at Bern on 25 February 2019 between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Swiss Confederation on citizens' rights following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from—

  (a)

  the European Union, and

  (b)

  the free movement of persons agreement,

  so far as the Agreement operates for the purposes of the case where “specified date” for the purposes of that Agreement has the meaning given in Article 2(b)(ii) of that Agreement;

• [F1 “Windsor Framework” means the part of the withdrawal agreement known as the Windsor Framework by virtue of Joint Declaration No. 1/2023 of 24 March 2023 made between the EU and the United Kingdom in the Joint Committee established by the withdrawal agreement;]

• “withdrawal agreement” means the agreement between the United Kingdom and the EU under Article 50(2) of the Treaty on European Union which sets out the arrangements for the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the EU [F2 as modified in relation to the Windsor Framework (and as otherwise modified from time to time in accordance with any provision of that agreement)].

(2) In this Act references to before, after or on IP completion day, or to beginning with IP completion day, are to be read as references to before, after or at 11.00 p.m. on 31 December 2020 or (as the case may be) to beginning with 11.00 p.m. on that day.

(3) Subsection (4) applies if, by virtue of any change to EU summer-time arrangements, the transition or implementation period provided for by Part 4 of the withdrawal agreement is to end on a day or time which is different from that specified in the definition of “IP completion day” in subsection (1).

(4) A Minister of the Crown may by regulations—

(a) amend the definition of “IP completion day” in subsection (1) to ensure that the day and time specified in the definition are the day and time that the transition or implementation period provided for by Part 4 of the withdrawal agreement is to end, and

(b) amend subsection (2) in consequence of any such amendment.

(5) In subsection (3) “EU summer-time arrangements” means the arrangements provided for by Directive 2000/84/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 January 2001 on summer-time arrangements.

(6) In this Act any reference to an Article of the Treaty on European Union includes a reference to that Article as applied by Article 106a of the Euratom Treaty.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 39(1) inserted (20.2.2024) by The Windsor Framework (Constitutional Status of Northern Ireland) Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/164), regs. 1(2), 2(4)(b)

F2 Words in s. 39(1) substituted (20.2.2024) by The Windsor Framework (Constitutional Status of Northern Ireland) Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/164), regs. 1(2), 2(4)(a)