Investment Promotion and Protection in the Canada-UK Trade Relationship

加拿大-英国贸易关系中的投资促进和保护

• 批准号: ES/S008497/1
• 负责人: Yarik Kryvoi
• 金额: $ 0.87万
• 依托单位: British Institute of International and Comparative Law
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2018
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2018 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ES%2FS008497%2F1
• 关键词: Investment; Promotion; Protection; Canada; UK

The promotion and the protection of investment have emerged as a crucial part of the future trade relationship between Canada and the United Kingdom (UK). While Brexit has paved the way for the elaboration of a new bilateral free trade agreement, the significance of foreign direct investment stock in these two countries - CAN$ 97.9 billion of Canadian direct investment in the UK and CAN$ 41.8 billion of direct investment from the UK in Canada in 2016 - makes the consideration of bilateral investment regulation essential. At the same time, the exact nature and content of international investment regulation between Canada and the UK remain highly uncertain. Investment protection has become subject to undeniable controversy. Several stakeholders criticize the lack of legitimacy of international investment arbitration, used in the majority of international investment agreements to settle disputes between foreign investors and states. Numerous calls for reform also demonstrate an increased interest in linking investment protection with issues of human rights, environmental protection, labour rights and the prohibition of corruption. Moreover, the UK has not had control over foreign direct investment since the Lisbon Treaty gave exclusive competence in the area to the European Union; what priorities the UK will set once it has retaken control is unknown. The uncertainty surrounding the nature and the content of an international investment agreement between Canada and the UK requires a deeper understanding of the range of possibilities at hand. This knowledge synthesis project seeks to identify and analyze provisions that could and should be included in any such international investment agreement. Relying on a content analysis of international investment agreements and propositions from experts in international investment law, the project addresses the various possibilities that will have to be considered by negotiators with respect to dispute settlement, the breadth of protections granted to foreign investors, and obligations imposed on these actors. Despite the numerous criticisms that have been formulated against the very nature of international investment law, explicitly engaging with these concerns is entirely feasible from a legal perspective. Synthesizing knowledge regarding these provisions will ensure that policy-makers approach these unique negotiations with the appropriate tools to maximize the benefits to both countries and contribute to building a more legitimate international investment regime.

促进和保护投资已成为加拿大和英国未来贸易关系的重要组成部分。尽管英国脱欧为制定新的双边自由贸易协定铺平了道路，但这两个国家的外国直接投资存量的重要性——2016年加拿大对英国的直接投资为979亿加元，英国对加拿大的直接投资为418亿加元——使得考虑双边投资监管变得至关重要。与此同时，加拿大和英国之间国际投资监管的确切性质和内容仍然高度不确定。投资保护已成为无可否认的争议焦点。一些利益相关者批评国际投资仲裁缺乏合法性，大多数国际投资协议都使用国际投资仲裁来解决外国投资者与国家之间的争端。众多改革呼声也表明人们越来越有兴趣将投资保护与人权、环境保护、劳工权利和禁止腐败问题联系起来。此外，自《里斯本条约》赋予欧盟在该领域的专属权限以来，英国一直无法控制外国直接投资；英国重新夺回控制权后将制定哪些优先事项尚不得而知。加拿大和英国之间国际投资协议的性质和内容存在不确定性，需要更深入地了解当前的可能性范围。该知识综合项目旨在确定和分析可以且应该包含在任何此类国际投资协议中的条款。该项目依靠对国际投资协定的内容分析和国际投资法专家的建议，探讨了谈判者在争端解决、给予外国投资者保护的广度以及对这些行为者施加的义务方面必须考虑的各种可能性。尽管针对国际投资法的本质提出了许多批评，但从法律角度来看，明确解决这些问题是完全可行的。综合有关这些条款的知识将确保政策制定者使用适当的工具进行这些独特的谈判，以最大限度地提高两国的利益，并为建立更合法的国际投资制度做出贡献。