The TPPA was a botch-up from the start, says New Zealand First Leader and Member of Parliament for Northland Rt Hon Winston Peters.
'The Prime Minister must explain why he did a disservice to New Zealanders by talking up billion dollar gains from the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement to the New Zealand public.
'He should have known we stood no chance against trillion dollar protectionism of US, Canadian and Japanese farmers, and Corporate Power wanting to tie nations into servitude on many counts, and a loss of sovereignty.
'There was never going to be any leeway for New Zealand but Mr Key and Trade Minister Tim Groser kept working to accommodate their new buddies, the US.
'The problem for Mr Groser was that he was embarrassingly out of touch with the New Zealand public and a substantial part of National's rural support base.
'There should be no more of the TPPA. New Zealand needs to negotiate only with like-minded countries that are prepared to open up to fair trade arrangements.”
New Zealand borders are open, which begs the question 'just what was it we had to negotiate?” says Mr Peters.
'As the Guardian has revealed, Corporate Power poured millions into US politicians' pockets to promote the TPPA and vote ‘yes' to fast tracking.
'All this shows is that Prime Minister Key and Trade Minister Groser cannot read a seriously straightforward international commercial situation.
'Clearly, being a banker and a currency speculator doesn't prepare one for this type of environment.
'The deal makers simply couldn't do the deal.
'More importantly, if they understood the American political environment everything is off until the 2016 presidential election in the US.”
8 comments
Theodorus
Posted on 02-08-2015 21:49 | By Theodorus
The freedom of buying and selling of produce would be a good thing but the selling of our land that produces the produce we will have to emigrate to the moon soon or be slaves in our own counry
Good Result!
Posted on 03-08-2015 15:44 | By morepork
I'm all in favour of Free Trade (provided it is fair and ethical) but the idea of allowing Big Business to simply override our Sovereignty and Laws is snot acceptable. As soon as evidence of the corruption behind this deal in the USA became known, our Government should have pulled us out of it immediately. We are a food-producing nation in a world that is starving; do we really need to bend the knee to corporate cartels in order to find a market? I don't think so. Winston is right on the button with this one. The only danger is that they'll probably try again after US elections in 2016. Selling off our Real Estate is one thing; selling off our right to democratically determine our future is quite another. Resist TPP!
Morepork
Posted on 03-08-2015 21:43 | By MISS ADVENTURE
The TPPA is written by and for large US companies to be able to trade and proliferate into other countries in the Pacific and in the process lose sovereignty, gain nothing for New Zealand exports and likely higher costs for imports such as pharmaceuticals that some details have leaked out about. In end result the tariffs imposed on New Zealand farming exports will remain and so New Zealand will gain nothing except higher costs than before.
who do you trust
Posted on 05-08-2015 12:39 | By Tracy Jane
Can you trust the National Government that creates 100 billion dollars of debt (over 90 billion more that Labour led government) and then lies about it? Why does a country need to borrow dollars from an overseas bank? It's a governments most important job to create money as a method of exchange so that we can buy each others goods and services. We don't need that $100 billion of o/s $ to run our country - if we do its because the government is doing a shoddy job - we'll be in Greece's position before you can say 'default on loans'.
The TPPA removes
Posted on 09-08-2015 12:57 | By GregAKL
country of origin labeling. Key is lying or living in fantasy land if he things the flag change will be economically gold rush. Key believes his own propaganda.
More Stuff up's
Posted on 09-08-2015 20:23 | By Merlin
How many stuff up's do we have to have from the Government before New Zealanders wake up.Sold down the river on TPPP?,Privatisation i.e Serco,Novapay,Charter School Problems, Social Housing most of these contracts where to overseas contractors and now our housing prices are being raised by overseas investors.
Where is the evidence to believe
Posted on 14-08-2015 19:17 | By Merlin
Where is the evidence to believe we will get billions of dollars through the TPP.Is just more of no facts and saying things to make it look like a good deal.What about the extra cost to medicines from taxpayers money.We need more information not just what John Key says as he makes a lot of it off the top of his head and has been caught out before blaming others.We need more transparency please
A JK specialty.
Posted on 15-08-2015 15:30 | By s83cruiser
""Lies, damned lies, and statistics" is a phrase describing the persuasive power of numbers, particularly the use of statistics to bolster weak arguments". Don't you just love the little man I suppose at least he's consistent be he is using the same tactic to push through a flag that no one seems to want....My fear is there is something twice as bad being snuck under the radar by him and his cronies while we all have our eye on the flag/TPPA balls...I can just see the headlines "Keys and Finlayson give Auckland back to northern Maori under secret treaty deal. Aucklander's have three weeks to vacate their homes."
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