Andrew Bissell

Question for Scots about your newly acquired 18 SEZs and 2 Freeports (signed off by SNP MP Kate ‘nothing to see here’ Forbes. Do you know if Scottish SEZs have an Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) or equivalent mechanism written into their 25 year licenses?’ The 48 English SEZs do, it is called the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) Similar to ISDS LCIA is a corporate justice court that can bypass domestic courts and the national sovereignty of country’s with the power to sue govts for billions in arbitration disputes. In 2008 LCIA partnered with Dubai International Financial Centre's Arbitration Institute (DAI) and the LCIA, the DIFC-LCIA combined the reputation of the LCIA with expertise in the legal and business culture of the Gulf and wider MENA region to deliver arbitration and ADR services for local and foreign business within the MENA region. jusmundi.com/en/document/pub… Why am I asking this? It is beyond urgent that a devolved administration such as Scotland, that had no obligation to adopt Westminster’s rollout of deregulated SEZs and Freeports check whether or not a corporation, foreign or domestic can sue the Scottish Govt for potentially billions in a investor dispute. An ISDS type case could bankrupt Scotland especially one that emanates from any one of Scotland’s 18 deregulated SEZs and 2 Freeports. Know that the Honduran Govt is embroiled in an ISDS case with Peter Thiel’s venture capital company Prospera who tried to set up a charter city on the Island of Roatan until it was shut down by The Supreme Court for violations of Honduran citizens sovereignty. Prospera is suing the Honduran Govt for $11 billion which is nearly two thirds of the Honduras economy. Starmer has just announced the UK govt is to take a secondary role in economic growth by handing over big govt powers to corporations meaning they can ‘self-regulate’ in a country that is now literally a patchwork of corporate sovereignties. jusmundi.com/en/document/pub…