NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Jane Kelsey: Leaked TPPA text has all the dangers Govt promised to negotiate away

By Jane Kelsey
NZ Herald·
26 Mar, 2015 08:30 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Whangarei residents make known their opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA). Photo / NZME.

Whangarei residents make known their opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA). Photo / NZME.

Opinion

Yesterday Wikileaks posted a near-ready investment chapter of the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) dated January 20. It shows the Government has not listened to New Zealanders opposing special rights for foreign investors and their enforcement in controversial, private, offshore tribunals.

Nor has it protected the New Zealand Government's right to regulate from being attacked by foreign investors and from rogue interpretations by investment arbitration tribunals, as promised.

The text shows the main rules relied on by foreign investors are largely unchanged from the previous leak in 2012. In one important case, the worst option was chosen.

There is no agreement on restricting capital flows in a financial crisis; the choice is between a weak exception and a meaningless one.

There are no effective exceptions for public policy areas like health, the environment or culture. Instead, the text recognises the right to regulate for those matters where the Government's action is consistent with the chapter!

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Such flaws should be fatal to the deal, especially when US corporations are responsible for more investment disputes than any other country.

The litany of recent cases, seeking hundreds of millions of dollars compensation, has produced a groundswell of resistance to investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS).

The French and German Governments have said they won't accept ISDS in the parallel deal being negotiated between the US and the EU. That follows disputes against Germany involving phasing out nuclear power plants and climate change mitigation measures.

An ISDS decision last week is especially pertinent, given the protests against Auckland's proposed harbour reclamation. An international investment tribunal under the North American Free Trade Agreement (the template for the TPPA) held Canada liable for a decision by an environment panel in Nova Scotia to deny US firm Bilcon approval for a controversial quarry and marine terminal.

A review panel established under local environmental laws criticised Bilcon's poor consultation with indigenous peoples, fishers and other communities and found the project contrary to "community core values". Bilcon complained local officials had encouraged the project and called the review panel a "rare, cumbersome and costly obstacle" to its investment.

Discover more

Opinion

Bryce Edwards: The ramifications of the spying scandal

25 Mar 04:03 AM
Economy

Pharmac TPP fears dismissed

02 Jul 05:00 PM
Opinion

Jane Kelsey: Labour needs to stand firm on TPPA

27 Jul 12:48 AM

In a split decision, the majority - the investor's nominee and the chair - said the panel failed to explore alternative ways to address public concerns. Bilcon's treatment was considered unfair and discriminatory, because similar panels in other parts of Canada had approved such projects subject to conditions. The US firm wants $300 million damages.

The dissenting arbitrator, appointed by Canada, objected that Bilcon gained financial compensation that was not available from the domestic courts, where the matter should have been resolved. Decisions about Canadian law now end up being made by offshore investment tribunals. He also warned the decision will "create a chill" on the operation of future environmental review panels.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The Canadian Government is expected to demand the province reimburse it for the damages, as it did with a recent dispute where Exxon was awarded $17 million because a provincial government's requirement to invest more R&D funds locally breached a rule prohibiting performance requirements on investors.

The Government and its negotiators know these investment chapters, especially ISDS, are facing a crisis of legitimacy. But nothing has been done to rein in the adventurism of arbitrators who pass judgment on vital matters of public policy. There is no code of conduct for arbitrators to address conflicts of interest arising when investment lawyers also act as the judges in investment disputes. There is no appeal.

The leaked text underscores again the anti-democratic essence of the TPPA negotiations. Not only are negotiations secret, but the agreement puts handcuffs on future central and local governments for the indefinite future without people or Parliament having an effective say.

Jane Kelsey is a law professor at the University of Auckland.

Debate on this article is now closed.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

High-risk cancer patients affected by halt on some colonoscopies

14 May 08:30 PM
New ZealandUpdated

Collins blasts Te Pāti Māori's behaviour while praising Van Velden’s c-bomb

14 May 08:27 PM
New Zealand

One person seriously injured in midnight fight in Katikati

14 May 08:03 PM

Connected workers are safer workers 

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

High-risk cancer patients affected by halt on some colonoscopies

High-risk cancer patients affected by halt on some colonoscopies

14 May 08:30 PM

MidCentral has outsourced up to 200 colonoscopies to the private sector to clear backlog.

Collins blasts Te Pāti Māori's behaviour while praising Van Velden’s c-bomb

Collins blasts Te Pāti Māori's behaviour while praising Van Velden’s c-bomb

14 May 08:27 PM
One person seriously injured in midnight fight in Katikati

One person seriously injured in midnight fight in Katikati

14 May 08:03 PM
Privileges committee recommends suspension for Te Pāti Māori MPs

Privileges committee recommends suspension for Te Pāti Māori MPs

14 May 07:03 PM
The Hire A Hubby hero turning handyman stereotypes on their head
sponsored

The Hire A Hubby hero turning handyman stereotypes on their head

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP