Giving evidence on 27 March to the House of Commons Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee, Gove said: ‘We are seeking to ensure that our statute book is in an orderly fashion, looking at every piece of retained EU law and deciding whether we want to retain, amend or ditch. I think that, in the overwhelming number of cases, by the end of this calendar year we will have decided that we want to retain.' Gove was responding to a question from Geraint Davies MP on the Bill and the government’s agreements with the devolved governments of Scotland and Wales.
Gove also said: ‘In each area, each government department is looking at its stock of EU law and regulation… But things like protection for workers or means of maintaining high environmental standards are not diluted and they will not be.’
The Bill sets a sunset clause by which time all EU-derived legislation will be repealed unless specifically selected to remain on the statute book.