PACER Plus

PTI welcomes PACER Plus signing

The PTI Network has congratulated the Pacific countries who signed the agreement earlier this month in Tonga.

Michael Greenslade, Trade & Investment Commissioner and CEO PTI New Zealand, said it’s an important agreement that will strengthen Pacific relations.

“New Zealand and Australian markets are important for the Pacific Islands, and closer trade and economic relations will have an important role in increasing collective prosperity.  The key objective of PACER Plus is to encourage economic development and promote business growth across the Pacific.”

Vanuatu parliament unites in opposition to PACER Plus

Vanuatu said last week that it was not yet ready to sign the trade and aid deal for Pacific nations with Australia and New Zealand, joining Fiji and Papua New Guinea in their opposition.

RNZI reports the opposition leader Ishmael Kalsakau said he is happy the government had finally heard the concerns raised on behalf of the people about the possible impacts the agreement would have on Vanuatu.

Mr Kalsakau believes the agreement will mean more cheap imported goods, which he says may contribute to an increase in the number of cases of non-communicable diseases in Vanuatu.

NZ not worried about absences from PACER Plus

Nine countries from around the region, as well as Australia and New Zealand, are in Tonga to sign the PACER Plus agreement, wrapping up nearly a decade of negotiations.

The deal has been polarising with critics saying it threatens the interests of island countries, and was unbalanced towards the interests of Australia and New Zealand.

But proponents tout it as a new kind of deal that links development to trade.

Todd McClay said this would give funding to boost exports from Pacific countries, and create rules to make it easier for the region's countries to trade.

Pacific trade deal weakened by Fiji, PNG, Vanuatu withdrawal: AFTINET

Dr Patricia Ranald, Convener of the Australian Fair Trade in Investment Network (AFTINET), said today that this is because the three largest Pacific island economies are saying there are no benefits for them.

Dr Ranald said that the text was released only two weeks ago. Pacific island, Australian and NZ community groups are calling for an independent analysis and time for proper public and parliamentary consultation about the deal.

Trade advisors shocked by Vanuatu action on PACER-plus

The regional free trade agreement, which had been negotiated for nearly a decade, would be signed by the region's trade ministers in Tonga this week.

RNZI reports that on Thursday, Vanuatu's government said it would not sign the agreement, joining two of the Pacific's other large economies, Fiji and Papua New Guinea, in refusing to do so.

Steve Siro, from the Office of the Chief Trade Advisor, said the announcement came out of the blue, as it had until a week ago been a big proponent.

Vanuatu's PACER-Plus move of little surprise

Delegates from 14 Pacific nations are due to meet in Nuku'alofa on Wednesday to sign a free trade deal that has been under negotiation for eight years.

TNC Pacific Consulting's Tess Newton Cain said the government was seeking more information before it went any further with the deal.

RNZI reports she said there had always been significant opposition in Vanuatu over such matters as the impact on infant industries and the loss of tariffs.

But Ms Newton Cain said those issues, as well as the benefits to the island countries from PACER Plus, have been overstated.

Vanuatu not ready to sign PACER Plus

The Council of Ministers had issued a statement saying it intended to sign eventually, but not until it had a more thorough look at the 1000 page document - the text of which has only just been made public.

He said there had also been strong local opposition to the deal from NGOs, churches and MPs.

RNZI reports the two biggest nations in the Pacific, Fiji and Papua New Guinea, are not currently part of PACER Plus, with Fiji saying it wants to renegotiate parts of it.

Call for more time to assess Pacific trade deal

The full text of the proposed deal has been made available online only a few weeks out from the planned signing ceremony to be held in Tonga on the 14th of this month.

A trade justice campaigner for the Pacific Network on Globalisation, Adam Wolfenden, said there was simply not enough time for an independent assessment of the proposed agreement.

Mr Wolfenden said the extremely complex legal document would have a massive impact on a cross section of society in the Pacific.

PACER Plus signing in Tonga

Representatives from all 14 participating members, including New Zealand, Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Kiribati, Niue, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu, will be in Nuku’alofa, Tonga to sign the agreement.

It has been challenging getting the agreement over the line, and the successful conclusion of PACER Plus negotiations in Brisbane is a landmark day for trade and the sustainable economic development of the Pacific, NZ Trade Minister Todd McClay says.

Aid from NZ/Aust key to success of PACER Plus – Kessie

RNZ reports he helped the island countries negotiate the deal and said it should bring significant benefits.

But Dr Kessie said a key is that New Zealand and Australia meet their commitments to allocate up to 20 per cent of their Pacific aid budgets to helping the island nations develop such things as the capacity to meet international bio-security requirements.

He said this would amount to $US300 million dollars annually being allocated.