The Faculty's Dr Lorand Bartels was invited to give evidence before the House of Lords EU Financial Affairs Sub-Committee on Wednesday 13 March.
Dr Bartels gave evidence alongside Eric White, Consultant at Herbert Smith Freehills, on the position of financial services in the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Questions addressed by the Committee included:
- How developed are the provisions for financial services at the WTO compared to those for goods or other types of services?
- How is the 'prudential carve-out' applied in practice? To what extent can its use undermine the commitments made under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)?
- How could the limitations of WTO rules for financial services be addressed, such as through a free trade agreement?
- Given that the UK is currently entirely aligned with EU rules, could a lack of EU equivalence decisions for the UK be challenged at the WTO?
Dr Bartels is a member of the International Law Association's study group on free trade agreements and helped to establish the Society of International Economic Law. He is a general editor of the Cambridge International Trade and Economic Law Series (CUP), an associate editor of the Journal of World Trade and an editorial board member of several journals, including the Journal of International Economic Law, the Journal of International Dispute Settlement and Legal Issues of Economic Integration.
The hearing is available to stream from the Parliament website.