Published: 11th November 2021 In recently published evidence on The Scrutiny of International Treaties and other international agreements in the 21st century, for the House of Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, we call for greater scrutiny and accountability to be upheld for international agreements to ensure Parliament is truly sovereign and the interests of marginalised groups are protected. Treaties are an increasingly important part of the UK’s constitutional settlement, not only because of Brexit but because of the growth of the global economy, the impact of global issues such as climate change, and the power of global corporations. Read the full submission Our submission centres around three key issues: Sovereignty: ensuring parliamentary sovereignty is not abrogated in practice by treaties constraining current or future legislation Accountability: ensuring that government treaty decisions are well made and held to account effectively Rights: ensuring that existing rights are not diminished by treaties and any new treaty rights can be appropriately exercised, which requires representation throughout the treaty process. Read Deputy Legal Director Arabella Lang writing in The Constitution Society on the issue of treaty accountability and the role the courts can play. You might be interested in… Joint evidence on the scrutiny of international treaties