On 6 July 2020, the UK Government announced the introduction of
a "Global Human Rights" sanctions regime (the
"GHR Sanctions"). The regime marks the
first time the UK Government has imposed sanctions measures
independently from the European Union and the first time it has
exercised its ability to impose sanctions directly in response to
human rights violations. However, the new measures do not
necessarily indicate the UK's future policy direction, and
after Brexit the UK sanctions regime will look broadly similar to
that of the EU.
The new GHR Sanctions regime
In May 2018, the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018
("SAMLA") entered into law, which
provided for the UK Government's sanctions powers following the
UK's withdrawal from the European Union. As noted in our previous blogpost, SAMLA included the ability
for the UK Government to impose sanctions where the relevant
Minister considers they would provide accountability for or to be a
deterrent to gross
