Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the policy paper entitled UK-EU Summit: Common Understanding, published on 19 May 2025, in which areas the European Court of Justice would have oversight that is not permitted by existing treaties in (a) Great Britain and (b) Northern Ireland.

The Common Understanding between the UK and the EU sets out the results of exploratory discussions ahead and a new agenda for cooperation. The UK and the EU have agreed to take forward these commitments swiftly through technical negotiations.

The Common Understanding does not provide for oversight of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) within Great Britain or Northern Ireland. Instead it provides that the CJEU will have a limited role in assisting an independent arbitration tribunal responsible for deciding a dispute between the UK and the EU, and only where there is dynamic alignment of laws under any future SPS agreement, ETS linking agreement or an electricity agreement.

The Windsor Framework continues to apply in Northern Ireland with a role for the CJEU within that framework.