With the official announcement that negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) have been completed, CHOICE urges the Government to make all details publicly available as soon as possible and for the Productivity Commission to conduct a full cost-benefit analysis of the agreement.
“At about midnight last night, Trade Ministers confirmed that the TPP negotiations were finished, however, the text of the agreement still won’t be publicly available for a number of weeks,” says CHOICE’s Campaigns Manager Erin Turner.
“It’s absurd that our Trade Minister has committed Australia to a deal the Australian public has never seen.
More than 7,400 Australians signed a CHOICE petition calling for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to release the text of the TPP before it was signed.
“Now the agreement has been signed in the dark, all Australians will be waiting nervously to see what the government has traded away,” Ms Turner says.
“The TPP has been described as a transformational, modern agreement that will deliver huge benefits for the citizens of nations involved. These claims have been made with no independent assessment and no cost-benefit analysis of the Agreement for Australia.
“Australia has no need to rush. The United States will spend months assessing this new trade deal and we should do the same.
“We need a full cost-benefit analysis conducted by the Productivity Commission as well as a chance for genuine public consultation on the impact of the new agreement.
“CHOICE urges the Government to commit to a full cost-benefit analysis of the TPP before Australia signs on to complex new rules, governing everything from financial regulations to copyright provisions,” says Ms Turner.
“This agreement has the potential to impact every aspect of the Australian economy. It’s too big to ignore the fine print which is why we need a full and transparent assessment of its impact before signature.”