"HISTORIC VOTE SEES EUROPE PAVING THE WAY FOR MORE ETHICAL FINANCIAL INVESTMENT", 5 Nov 2018

[A] historic vote in the European Parliament [...] could pave the first step for a more ethical system of financial investment... This vote was led by a cross party group [...], demonstrating the EU’s commitment to sustainable investment and Parliament’s unified position...

[T]he European Parliament voted overwhelmingly to adopt a stronger due diligence regime, and a more robust framework to define sustainability risks when it comes to investments.

This means that MEPs have publicly adopted guidelines set down by the OECD on Due Diligence for Institutional Investors...

If EU Member States agree to implement this proposal, this regime will ensure that an investor or investment services provider identifies, avoids or mitigates, accounts for and communicates about actual or potential adverse Environmental, Social and Governance factors and sustainability risks.

Groups are urgently calling for the Member States to support the Parliament’s initiative, and work to strengthen this due diligence regime as part of the EU’s Sustainable Finance Action Plan.

A recent briefing, released by the anti-corruption NGO Global Witness, shows that European’s money – and EU-based investors – regularly play a key role in funding projects linked to human rights abuses...