Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | News Video | Crime | Employers | Housing | Immigration | Legal | Local Govt. | Maori | Welfare | Unions | Youth | Search

 

TPPA is a bad idea

TPPA is a bad idea

“Currently New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam, the USA, Japan, Malaysia, Canada, and Mexico are still negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. Officially talks finished last August, but the reality is that they keep on going, with the next round due to take place in December,” John Ring, Democrats for Social Credit spokesman on Foreign Affairs and candidate for Wigram, told a Christchurch meeting today.

“One of the matters that was dealt with relatively early (in 2009) was the issue of how physical trade was to be dealt with. New Zealand and Australia wanted one schedule, so all participating countries would agree to the same things, but the USA said many of these countries already had free trade deals with each other, so existing deals should remain, but those countries that didn't already have trade deals with each other should negotiate bilateral deals. The USA won on that point.

“Some people have criticised Japan and Australia for doing a bilateral deal outside the TPPA, but this was in accordance with the basic strategy that had been agreed to, except that they did it outside the TPPA, so if the full TPPA is never agreed to, the agreement between Japan and Australia will still stand.

“One consequence of this approach to negotiations is that if Japan and the United States reach an agreement on trade in dairy products, this will have no effect on negotiations about dairy products between New Zealand and the United States or between New Zealand and Japan. The Prime Minister doesn't seem to be aware of that.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

”Early last year the United Stated and New Zealand were almost in agreement about physical trade. The one area on which they could not agree was dairy, and that doesn't seem to have changed since then.

“However, the Transpacific Partnership Agreement has 29 chapters, only four of which have anything to do with physical trade. Topics covered in other chapters include such things as investment, regulatory coherence, intellectual property, and state – owned enterprises.

“Collectively, these other provisions would, if the agreement is adopted, tend to reduce our economic performance, reduce the options available for handling any crisis, and slow down the government's response to crises such as the recent earthquakes.

“Overall, the agreement is a bad idea and should be rejected,” said Mr Ring.

ENDS

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines



Gordon Campbell: On Dune 2, And Images Of Islam


Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture tends to be hostile to Islam when we’re sitting in the dark, with popcorn.
Any number of movie examples come to mind, beginning with Rudolf Valentino’s role (over a century ago) as the romantic Arab hero in The Sheik...
More


 
 


Government: One-stop Shop Major Projects On The Fast Track

The Coalition Government’s new one-stop-shop fast track consenting regime for regional and national projects of significance will cut red tape and make it easier for New Zealand to build the infrastructure and major projects needed to get the country moving again... More

ALSO:


Government: GPS 2024: Over $20 Billion To Get Transport Back On Track
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has released the draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport, outlining the Coalition Government’s plan to build and maintain a transport system that enables people to get to where they need to go quickly and safely... More

ALSO:

Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.