Dr Filippo Fontanelli publishes research briefing on free trade agreements and environmental policies for the Scottish Parliament Information Centre
Tue 8 September 2020
Dr Filippo Fontanelli (Edinburgh Law School, Edinburgh Centre for International and Global Law) has co-authored with Dr Annalisa Savaresi a research briefing commissioned by the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe).
The briefing provides a discussion of the interaction between trade agreements and measures to protect the environment, to frame Scotland's position in the context of emerging UK post-Brexit trade agreements. As well as explaining the functions of the WTO and free trade agreements, it outlines how different types of environmental protection measures may interact with international trade obligations.
The study offers a number of case studies on the interactions between trade rules and environment, animal welfare and food safety ambitions, with special emphasis on Scottish environmental policies, including two detailed case studies on trade in eggs and egg products, and on chlorine-washed chicken. The last section extols the interactions between devolution, trade and environmental standards, providing a summary of Scotland's position as a devolved nation within the UK’s external trade policy and ‘UK internal market’ plans.