New AFTINET actions against ISDS
Corporations are using investor rights in trade agreements to challenge government policies, including fossil fuel companies suing governments for billions if they take action to reduce carbon emissions.
Sign the Petition to stop investors like Clive Palmer from suing our government for billions over climate and other public interest policies
Background
Some international trade agreements allow foreign investors to sue governments if a change in law or policy reduces their profits, even if the change protects public health or the environment. The process, known as Investor-State Dispute Settlement or ISDS, enables foreign investors to bypass national courts and sue governments for billions of dollars in secretive international tribunals. Labor’s policy is to exclude ISDS from future trade agreements and review it in existing agreements, partly inspired by its experience of being sued by the Philip Morris Tobacco Company over its 2012 plain packaging law.
The removal of ISDS from agreements has become more urgent because Australian billionaire Clive Palmer registered his mining company in Singapore, has claimed to be a Singaporean investor and sued the Australian government in four separate claims for a total of $420 billlion. The first claim was for $300 billion after he lost a High Court appeal against a Western Australian government decision to refuse an iron ore mining license. The tribunal in this first case found that Palmer was not a Singaporean investor. He then lost a technical challenge to this decision but he is continuing to claim $120 billion for the three other cases.
These ongoing claims for $120 billion are because a Queensland Court refused his coal mining license and a license for a coal-fired power plant for environmental reasons, including increased carbon emissions.
Palmer’s coal cases are just one example of a growing global list of ISDS cases from fossil fuel companies against government decisions to reduce carbon emissions, and Australia could face more cases from fossil fuel companies. A recent United Nations Report concluded that ISDS is a “major obstacle” to the urgent actions needed to address the climate crisis.
Our petition asks the Trade Minister to implement Labor policy to exclude ISDS from future trade agreements and speed up its review of existing agreements. You can donate to the campaign here.
to-email
campaign@aftinet.org.au
AFTINET speaks at ISDS panel during Fiji climate meeting
October 7, 2026: Ahead of the annual United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP) in Türkiye this year, Fiji is hosting a pre-COP meeting to centre discussions on the Pacific and the urgent threat posed by climate change to the region. Pre-COP brings together representatives from government, civil society, communities, the private sector, youth groups, and others to discuss climate action and climate finance.
AFTINET convener, Dr Pat Ranald, spoke yesterday in a panel discussion titled “Investor Rights as a Barrier to Climate Action”. This was co-hosted by the Pacific Network on Globalisation (PANG), the Pacific Islands Climate Action Network (PICAN) and AFTINET. Adam Wolfenden from PANG and Dr Sindra Sharma from PICAN also spoke, and the panel was moderated by Emerita Professor Jane Kelsey from the University of Auckland.
First climate complaint under EU trade deal enforcement over New Zealand's climate rollbacks
October 2, 2026: Both ENDS, a Dutch civil society organisation, has filed a formal complaint with the European Commission under the EU-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement. Both sides made binding climate commitments in that agreement not to reduce climate regulation and to abide by commitments they made under the United Nations Paris agreement to address the climate crisis by reducing carbon emissions. The difference with previous non-binding commitments in some agreements is that the state-to-state dispute process which applies to tariff reductions and other issues in the agreement also applies to this commitment. New Zealand could ultimately face trade penalties if it is found to have breached the commitments and does not amend the policies.
AFTINET submission to the general review of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)
September 29, 2026: Australia and the other 14 RCEP governments in the Asia-Pacific region are conducting general review of the RCEP five years after ratification. AFTINET’s submission advocates for a transparent consultation process during the negotiations and the publication of final text before it is signed.
Civil society urges EU to drop intellectual property demands in Malaysia trade talks
September 28, 2026: Over 70 civil society organisations from Malaysia, the European Union and around the world have signed a letter calling on the EU to remove intellectual property provisions from the proposed Malaysia-EU Free Trade Agreement (MEUFTA) that go beyond the requirements of the World Trade Organisation’s Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).
WTO report admits North-South inequalities as North-South debate continues on WTO reform
September 24, 2026: Last week, the World Trade Organisation published its 2026 World Trade Report ahead of its annual Public Forum from which civil society groups were largely excluded.
Trump administration threatens trade retaliation over Australia’s tech regulation
September 10, 2026: The Australian government’s proposed legislation to force digital platforms to give users the choice to opt out of algorithm-generated feeds has already received a response from the Trump administration, with threats of trade retaliation on any regulation.
US initiates trade war with Canada
September 2, 2026: The collapse of the latest US-Canada trade negotiations, leading to the US tariffs, Canadian retaliation and US President Donald Trump signing an executive order to rename Lake Ontario, is another example of the ongoing campaign of trade dominance that the Trump Administration has waged.
New article calls for equitable access in the WHO Pandemic Agreement
August 31, 2026: A new article written by Adjunct Professor and former ambassador Anna George and published by the Australian Institute of International Affairs highlights the critical challenge of ensuring the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) Annex in the WHO’s Pandemic Preparedness Agreement delivers genuine equity.
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