2020 No. 317 (C. 15)
Exiting The European Union
The European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 (Commencement No. 2) Regulations 2020
Made 18th March 2020

The Minister for the Cabinet Office, in exercise of the power conferred by section 42(7) of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020, makes the following Regulations:
2020 c. 1.

Citation and interpretation
1 These Regulations may be cited as the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 (Commencement No. 2) Regulations 2020.
2 In these Regulations, “the Act” means the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020.

Commencement
3 The following provisions of the Act come into force on the day after the day on which these Regulations are made—
(a) section 15(3) (Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens’ Rights Agreements) so far as it relates to the provisions mentioned in paragraph (b);
(b) the following provisions of Schedule 2 (Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens’ Rights Agreements)—
(i) paragraphs 14 to 17;
(ii) paragraphs 20 and 21;
(iii) the definition of “Part 2” in paragraph 22(3); and
(iv) paragraph 32.
4 Paragraph 5 of Schedule 3 (Protection for certain rights, safeguards etc. in Belfast Agreement) of the Act comes into force on 23rd March 2020.
Penny Mordaunt Paymaster General Cabinet Office 18th March 2020

EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations bring into force provisions of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 (c. 1) (“the Act”). These are the second commencement regulations made under the Act.
Regulation 3 brings into force the specified paragraphs of Schedule 2 to the Act relating to the Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens’ Rights Agreements (“the IMA”). These provisions place duties on the IMA relating to accounts and audit, public records, investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration, the Freedom of Information Act and public sector equality duty and require the IMA to produce an annual plan and guidance.
Regulation 4 brings into force paragraph 5 of Schedule 3 to the Act, which amends section 71 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (restrictions on proceedings) concerning the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission’s ‘own motion’ standing powers to challenge the compatibility of legislation with the European Convention on Human Rights through the Human Rights Act 1998.

NOTE AS TO EARLIER COMMENCEMENT REGULATIONS
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
The following provisions of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 (c. 1) have been brought into force by commencement regulations made before the date of these Regulations.
Provision	Date of Commencement	S.I. No
Section 1	Exit day	2020/75
Section 2	Exit day	2020/75
Section 5	Exit day	2020/75
Section 6	Exit day	2020/75
Section 10	Exit day	2020/75
Section 15 (1) and (2)	Exit day	2020/75
Section 15(3) (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Section 25(4)(b) and (6)(a) (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Section 26(1)(a) (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Section 26(2)	Exit day	2020/75
Section 27	Exit day	2020/75
Section 41(4) (partially)	Immediately before exit day	2020/75
Section 41(4) and (6) (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraphs 1 to 13 of Schedule 2	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 18 of Schedule 2	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 19 of Schedule 2	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 34 of Schedule 2	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 41 of Schedule 2	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 1(1) and (2) of Schedule 5	Immediately before exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 7(c) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 11 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 12(c) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 18 of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 19 of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 23 of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 25 of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 28 of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 29 of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 33 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 35 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 36(c) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 37(d) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 40(1), (2) and (5) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 43 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 44(2)(b), (c) and (f) to (h) and (4) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 45 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 46 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 47(3) and (5) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 48(1), (2) and (4) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 49 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 51 of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 53(5), (7)(b) and (8)(b) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 54(1), (4), (5) and (7) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 55(1) and (2) of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 56(7)(a) of Schedule 5 (partially)	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraphs 58 to 62 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
Paragraph 63 of Schedule 5	Exit day	2020/75
“Exit day” is defined in Schedule 1 of the Interpretation Act 1978 (c. 30) by reference to section 20 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (c. 16) and means 31 January 2020 at 11.00pm.