September 6, 2017: Adam Wolfenden from the Pacific Network on Globalisation has written an excellent opinion piece questioning why PACER-Plus is so high on the priority agenda at the annual Pacific Island Forum Leaders Meeting in Samoa this month.
September 1. 2017: Trade negotiators from 11 of the original 12 TPP countries met in Sydney from August 28-30 for their third set of talks to see if the TPP can be revived without the US, aiming to complete talks by November this year. The 11 countries are Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam.
August 29, 2017: Dr Patricia Ranald, Convenor of the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network, and University of Sydney Research Associate, explains why governments should not revive the zombie TPP.
Media Release August 28, 2017: Community groups will rally today outside a meeting of trade negotiators from 11 of the original 12 Trans-Pacific Partnership countries* who are discussing whether the TPP can be revived without the US, and how much the text should be changed.
“Trade Minister Ciobo should not be supporting revival of the dead TPP without change when there is strong community opposition and the Australian Parliament has not endorsed it,” said Dr Patricia Ranald, convener of the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network (AFTINET).
Public health and other community organisations from most TPP countries have also written to all TPP ministers warning that TPP provisions would have serious consequences for the health of the people in TPP countries.
The 11 remaining countries involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership are continuing to meet in an effort to revive this failed agreement. They missed their deadline of November 11 2017, and the talks were only salvaged by an agreement to rename the deal, suspend some of its most controversial clauses and to have further talks over several months on issues raised by Canada and other governments.
Send a message to the Australian Trade Minister Steven Ciobo telling him not to revive the zombie TPP!
Media Release August 18, 2017: “Trade Minister Ciobo should not be leading the charge to revive the Trans-Pacific Partnership, when there is strong community opposition and the Australian Parliament has not endorsed it,” AFTINET Convenor Dr Patricia Ranald aaid today.
August 16, 2017: So far the Seasonal Worker Programs for Pacific Island and Timor-Leste workers in Australia have been kept separate from trade agreements like PACER-Plus. Trade agreements are rigid and hard to change, but a stand-alone agreement such as the Seasonal Worker Program for horticultural workers, can be adjusted. As Nic Maclellan argues in his Development Policy article, there is strong evidence that significant change is needed.
August 15, 2017: The formal renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement begins on August 16-20, 2017, in Washington DC. The US NAFTA objectives were published on July 17, 2017.
August 14, 2017: Media Release: “Trade Minister Ciobo is wrong to suggest that the Queensland government procurement policy to give preference to small local suppliers contradicts Australia’s current trade agreements. All of these agreements have exceptions which allow some preference to small and medium-sized enterprises. South Australia and Victoria have similar policies, as do Australia’s trading partners like the US and South Korea,” AFTINET Convenor Dr Patricia Ranald said today.