An Open Goal for UKIP?

I'm really quite confused by the story of the Video Recordings Act. Apparently, this is unenforceable because back when it was passed in 1984, the Government "failed to notify the European Commission about the law".

So what?

I can understand that EU law has to have primacy over national law, at least in certain areas. If the aim of the EU is to enable trade between its member states by removing barriers, it needs to harmonise minor regulations that hamper such trade. Ergo, its laws need to over-rule national laws, else it simply cannot remove legislative barriers to trade. The argument is then over the definition of the areas in which EU law takes precedence, rather than whether it does.

But this is different. It seems that we cannot pass a law at all unless we get it rubber-stamped by the EU. I'll just re-state that; our elected Government* can decide to pass a law, one that is not in any way in contravention of EU laws, it can present it to our elected MPs who by a majority approve the Bill on our behalf, it can be presented to the Sovereign who signs it into law ... but unless and until we go to Brussels and say "excuse me, we've passed a law, would you mind putting a copy in your file please?" it is not effective.

Why?

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*back in 1984 we had one of those. Ah .... nostalgia...