[Secretary for Government Business and Constitutional Relations Michael] Russell stated: "We have the absolute right and must be involved to deal with devolved competencies, and it's important for us to give opinion on reserved competencies, even though there is no absolute obligation.

"One of the ways we can protect our position is to diverge as little as possible from the European Union. We have the right to do that but the UK Government is very uncomfortable about it.

"That affects areas like the habitats directive and workforce rights, and the loss of freedom of movement will have a big impact on devolved areas."

archived
EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill , Oct
henry viii clauses identified in EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill