Until the end, the Lords, mostly remainers, tried to influence the Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB), the text implanting Brexit in British law. But the unelected members of the British Upper House had almost no chance.
Their amendments were all rejected by members of the House of Commons on Wednesday, January 22, where the Conservative Party now has a very large majority. The text, however historic in scope, was finally adopted in the process. Without drama, or almost no media coverage.
Final formalities before January 31
Still remains the ultimate "Royal consent", expected on January 23, and validation by the European Parliament, scheduled for January 29, and the United Kingdom may formally leave the European Union (EU) on January 31 at 11 p.m. London time (midnight Paris time) ).
At 1st February, and until the end of the transition period (end of 2020), the daily lives of the British and the 3.2 million Europeans living in the United Kingdom will remain largely unchanged. On the other hand, the country will suddenly lose all of its power relays in Brussels (MEPs, commissioner, etc.).
The WAB provides in particular that expatriates (British in the EU, Europeans in the United Kingdom) can continue to enjoy all their rights in their host country, starting with their right of residence. It also provides for special status for Northern Ireland, still part of the United Kingdom after Brexit, intended to avoid the return of a hard border on the island of Ireland. Northern Ireland will continue to be part of the European customs union, but will also be integrated into the future British customs union.
The Lords have tried in recent days to provide additional guarantees to the text. In particular, they demanded that European citizens be given physical proof (a paper document) of their right to stay in the United Kingdom. For the time being, they only receive an email guaranteeing them either a pre-settled status (five-year residence permit), i.e. one settled status (perpetual license, provided you have lived continuously in the country for five years, on the date of the request).
Lord Dubs' plea
Labor Lord Dubs had also proposed, and had adopted by the Upper House, an amendment proposing that unaccompanied refugee children in Europe could continue to join their family members in the United Kingdom after Brexit. Labor MPs had tried unsuccessfully to introduce the same type of addition to the WAB when the text was first read in the House in early January.
