London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Aug 05, 2025

Chris Mason: Sunak pledge to scrap EU laws collides with reality

Chris Mason: Sunak pledge to scrap EU laws collides with reality

This is a classic example of a big, bold campaigning promise colliding with reality.

When Rishi Sunak was running to be Conservative leader last summer, he put out a video.

In it, inside what is called the 'Brexit Delivery Department,' vast bundles of paper representing EU laws thud down on a desk, and then a shredder is wheeled into the room.

And yes, you guessed it, those A4 pages encounter oblivion, one after another, as they are fed in.

"Keep Brexit safe," the video concludes. "Vote Rishi Sunak today."

Well, not enough people did, from his perspective, but he became prime minister in the end nonetheless - and now that video has collided with reality.

It turns out trying to feed too much stuff into a shredder, too quickly, runs the risk of not being able to read it all before it encounters the metal gnashers and is torn to smithereens.

The government ditching its plan to automatically cull thousands of EU-era laws at the end of this year has had the whiff of inevitability about it for time.

For months, a myriad of groups have raised concerns about the unintended consequences of laws disappearing by default.

But plenty of Tory MPs are grumpy about this, seeing it as a straight forward failure to deliver from the prime minister.

One told me many felt the government was acting in "bad faith" and they didn't buy the argument that this was an impossible deadline.

Around 20 Conservative MPs went to see the chief whip Simon Hart to register their irritation.

Some Tory MPs went into Downing Street to do the same.

"There was an arms race in last summer's leadership race, where Liz and Rishi found themselves out Brexiting each other. That's where all this started," one senior figure told me.

Ministers claim they are now being pragmatic.

They say they are still "taking back control", as the Brexit campaign slogan put it, but are doing so at a more sensible pace.

The move has angered Brexiteer Tory MPs like Jacob Rees-Mogg


"Kemi [Badenoch] approaches Brexit not as an end in itself, but as a means to an end," one ally said of the business and trade secretary.

She happened to inherit all this because it had been a responsibility of Jacob Rees-Mogg, who was briefly Business Secretary under Liz Truss.

Mr Rees-Mogg is now the most outspoken public critic of Mrs Badenoch's plan.

Ministers are promising to get rid of another 600 laws by the end of the year - we'll find out which ones next week.

They claim around 1,500 others have either already gone, have been reformed, or that they soon will be.

But that still leaves a couple of thousand not yet looked at.

The old saying goes that politicians campaign in poetry and govern in prose.

In this instance, we've gone from a brash campaign video last August to a government ministerial statement nine months later.

And a broken promise.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
×