LONDON —
Facebook owner Meta is urging UK lawmakers considering legislation to scrap all
retained
European Union laws by 2024 to maintain some e-commerce rules to keep
Britain globally competitive.
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The UK
government introduced legislation in September to amend, repeal, or replace all
EU laws automatically retained after Brexit by the end of next year.
“The Brexit
Freedoms Bill will enable the
UK government to remove years of burdensome EU
regulation in favor of a more agile, home-grown regulatory approach that
benefits people and businesses across the UK,” it said at the time.
In a newly
disclosed letter to a committee of MPs scrutinizing the bill, the US tech giant
said it wanted to draw “attention to one key area of retained EU legislation
that we believe may be affected”.
The
California-based company, which has around 4,000 full-time staff in Britain,
noted 2002 electronic commerce regulations based on an EU directive limit the
liability of online platforms “that act as a mere conduit”.
“This
framework... is critical to maintaining an online environment that enables a
thriving and diverse technology sector to flourish in the UK,” Meta said.
It warned that
without it, “platforms and websites are less likely to want to operate in the
UK and may pull back from making the UK a hub for innovative new products and
services in the way the government envisages”.
Meta argued the
provisions should be “either explicitly maintained elsewhere or recommend that
the E-Commerce Regs are removed from scope of the Revocation Bill”.
The draft
legislation is currently working its way through parliament.
It has provoked
a backlash in Britain, with many public and private interest groups and
organizations accusing the government of moving too far, too fast.
Trade unions are
among those opposed to the bill, with one leading organization warning in another
letter to the committee published Friday that it “poses a significant threat to
workers’ rights and should be opposed by MPs”.
“It is striking
that ministers have yet to explain which laws they intend to retain, to amend,
or allow to expire,” the
Trades Union Congress said.
“Indeed, there
even remains uncertainty about whether government knows which laws are
affected,” it added, arguing “the ultimate goal is deregulation”.
Meanwhile
TheCityUK, one of London’s leading financial lobby groups, said it has “a
number of reservations about the appropriateness of this Bill in current
circumstances”.
The organization
cited “the overall need for it, opportunity costs, the risk of worsening the
relationship with the EU, and the potential for increased burdens on business”.
“At a minimum, a far
longer sunset period for implementation should be allowed,” it added.
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