Check out the latest edition of the It’s Our Future TPPA Bulletin. This issue provides an in-depth update on what’s been happening since the United States withdrew from the TPPA. It also introduces a petition produced with our friends at Action Station to urge the New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay to reconsider his intention …
The article below by Professor Kelsey was originally published on the Daily Blog on 5 February 2017. ___________ The governments and corporate lobbies that champion these deals are in a state of denial and desperately trying to rescue their bankrupt model. This year we begin work with others internationally to set a new agenda for …
Read Professor Kelsey’s op-ed on the demise of the TPPA here: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/the-country/news/article.cfm?c_id=16&objectid=11749471
The TPPA is all but dead after the US election. With anti-TPPA candidate Donald Trump as President-elect, the only chance the agreement had was a vote in the “lame duck” congressional session between the election and the inauguration of the new President on 20 January 2016. Senior Democrats and Republicans have since, however, stated that this …
The government has announced a ‘refresh’ of its trade policy. However, it looks more like a sticking plaster on the current failed policy when invasive surgery is required. Agreements like the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) become deeply concerning to many New Zealanders as they increasingly intrude into areas of sovereign decision-making. The rights of government to …
Imagine a private, global super court that empowers corporations to bend countries to their will. Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) is being used by corporations to evade the law and override the decisions of democratic governments. The cases cited in this investigation are part of a broader system that is removing the power of governments to …
Radio New Zealand’s Patrick O’Meara has published an interview with Professor Jane Kelsey on the increasing uncertainty surrounding the future of the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement. Germany’s economic affairs minister, Sigmar Gabriel, has commented that the TransAtlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks have failed. There has not been a single chapter agreed by the parties after 14 …
Andrew Little has said Labour would welcome renegotiation of the TPPA if it does not pass in the US this year.
Dr. Patricia Ranald, Director of the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network (AFTINET) argues that the TPP is about giving new rights to global multinationals and removing the rights of governments to regulate in the public interest. Ranald describes why the TPP is terrible for national health systems: The agreement locks in even more monopoly …
The case for the TPP being made in the US now rests on the national security argument – if the US doesn’t get TPP, China will lead on setting trade rules, and this will be a security threat to the US. The argument doesn’t stack up according to influential Washington insider, Clyde Prestowitz. If the combination …
A group of leading Australian economists have criticised recent free trade deals and argue that their benefits have been overstated. This echoes criticism of MFAT’s reliance on speculative modelling. Without their misleading assumptions, the analysis would have shown net costs for the New Zealand economy. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/foreign-affairs/top-economists-say-government-claims-mythical-trade-deal-benefits/news-story/9dbc2e7a72bdba398ae86066085f7f9d
The Daily Excelsior reports that provisions relating to the evergreening of patents have been dropped from RCEP negotiations after stiff opposition from India. ‘Evergreening’ involves making extremely minor changes to a patented product as a product expires, triggering a new period of patent protection: “It may be noted that some RCEP countries had tried to introduce a …
Evergreening clause dropped after stiff opposition from India Read More »
