Great Repeal Bill - Open letter to Julian Sturdy

Dear Mr Sturdy,

As part of the Brexit process the government will be introducing several repeal bills to move EU regulations into UK law, with the intention of repealing many of the regulations.

We have already seen this summer with the Grenfell Tower fire the effect of weak regulations, so that it is quite clear that we should not be reducing the protections that we have gained from being part of the EU in the name of reducing red tape.

Some of the areas that we get many of our protections from the EU include:

• Environmental protections; this for instance includes the ban on the use of neonicotinoid pesticides that are so harmful to bees;
• Clean water which has brought life back to many rivers which had no fish in them during my childhood
• Clean seas and beaches through regulations on the processing of sewage so that water companies are no longer allowed to dump raw sewage
• Clean air; regulations that the government still fails to enforce and which leads to the early death of 60,000 people per year
• Climate change, which is the greatest problem we face, as if we don’t get it right not only will much of the constituency be flooded by the end of the century but there will be devastating storms, a huge reduction in food production in many parts of the world and a refugee crisis with hundreds of millions of people fleeing parts of the world that become uninhabitable.

So far, the UK Government has said that the regulations will remain in force after we leave the European Union, but they have also said that they want to cut red tape in many areas that affect the profitability of business.

I am pleased that the government has made these promises, but as my MP I ask you to help ensure that they are kept.

As the Great Repeal Bill progresses, please defend our high standards and take whatever action you can to ensure we do not weaken our environment laws, or leave them vulnerable to future change away from the watchful gaze of the public and Parliament.

Please also take every opportunity to press the UK Government on my behalf to deliver their commitment to leave the environment in a better state for the next generation. I would like to be sure that there are clear, ambitious, and legally binding targets, and funding to achieve this, and regulators to ensure that they enforced.

I hope to see set out in the long-awaited 25 Year Environment Plan for England soon.

Robust laws and clear plans are vital if the UK is to continue to be a global leader in this area.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes

Tom.

Tom Franklin
4 Frazer Court
YorkG
YO30 5FH