UK's May insists Brexit will end EU court jurisdiction

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON

The direct jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on U.K.-related issues will come to an end with Brexit, the British government has said.

A position paper published Wednesday suggested a new mechanism to deal with legal matters between the U.K. and the EU in the post-Brexit era.

However, Prime Minister Theresa May was accused of doing a U-turn on previous promises to quit Europe-based courts.

The British public decided to leave the European Union last June, after 44 years of membership.

A string of new position papers on issues such as post-Brexit trade tariffs, the movement of goods and the nature of the EU/U.K. land border in Ireland have been released by London over the last week.

Bringing an end to the direct jurisdiction of the EU’s top court has been a key point for the British government. It had been viewed by anti-EU campaigners as part of Brussels influence over the U.K.

Wednesday’s paper indicates the British government aims to “respect the autonomy of EU law and U.K. legal systems while taking control of our own laws”.

'Ideological insistence'

May, speaking in Guildford, southern England on Wednesday, insisted: "What is absolutely clear, when we leave the European Union, we will be leaving the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.

“Parliament will make our laws. It is British judges who will interpret those laws and it will be the British Supreme Court that will be the arbiter of those laws.”

However, the opposition Labour Party’s shadow Brexit minister, Keir Starmer, said:

“The prime minister’s ideological insistence that there can be no future role whatsoever for the ECJ or any similar court-like body risks preventing the deal Britain needs.

“It has already held back a sensible and early agreement on issues such as Euratom and EU citizens.”

Wednesday’s paper also calls for an arrangement where legal disputes between the U.K. and the EU can be resolved without the CECJ as the final arbiter.

“It is in the interests of both parties to a dispute resolution mechanism. This will ensure a shared understanding of any agreements, both in terms of interpretation and application,” it added.