The draft UK/EU renegotiation deal: is it ‘legally binding and irreversible’?

The draft deal on renegotiation of the UK’s EU membership published in February 2016 has already caused great controversy.

In addition to concerns about the substance of the deal, there are doubts about its legal nature. In particular, is the deal ‘legally binding and irreversible’, as UK Prime Minister David Cameron had pledged.

This blog post by Steve Peers answers that question, looking first at the legal form of the agreement. Next, he suggests ways in which the draft deal could be made more legally secure. Then he examines, based on prior experience, whether the EU can be ‘trusted’ to implement the draft deal. Finally, Peers provides, in one table, his assessment indication of the extent to which each of the parts of the draft deal are ‘legally binding and irreversible’, based on the factors mentioned in the blog.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: The 'emergency brake' on EU citizens' benefits: Must the Commission or Council control it? / The draft renegotiation deal: EU immigration issues http://www.europeansources.info/record/blog-the-emergency-brake-on-eu-citizens-benefits-must-the-commission-or-council-control-it/

ESO: In Focus: Brexit - The United Kingdom and the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/brexit-the-united-kingdom-and-the-european-union/

ESO: Background information: Letter by President Donald Tusk to the Members of the European Council on his proposal for a new settlement for the United Kingdom within the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-letter-by-president-donald-tusk-to-the-members-of-the-european-council-on-his-proposal-for-a-new-settlement-for-the-united-kingdom-within-the-european-union/

Blog: Open Europe, 15.02.16: Can the European Parliament scupper David Cameron’s renegotiation deal? http://openeurope.org.uk/today/blog/can-the-european-parliament-scupper-david-camerons-renegotiation-deal/

The Guardian, 16.02.16: David Cameron suffers setback over proposed EU deal http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/feb/16/david-cameron-suffers-setback-over-proposed-eu-deal

European Parliament: Press Release, 16.02.16: Reform of UK membership: 'Parliament will do the utmost to support the compromise' http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/20160216STO14546/pdf

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