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Health, environment concerns about Abbott government and Trans Pacific Partnership

Trans-Pacific Partnership leaked chapter raises health, environment concerns ABC News By business reporter Michael Janda 27 Mar 15 Fair trade and consumer groups say a leaked draft chapter of the secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership shows that the Australian Government may be willing to trade off health and environmental protections.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is under negotiation between 12 countries and Wikileaks has released what it says is the draft chapter on investments as it stood in January.

That chapter shows that the Australian Government has asked for a specific exemption for Medicare, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, the Therapeutic Goods Administration and the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator from investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions.

These ISDS provisions would allow companies from countries covered by the trade agreement to sue the federal, state and local governments for introducing policies that are detrimental to their business interests.

There is a general provision in the chapter that exempts a country for being liable for measures that it “considers appropriate to ensure that investment activity in its territory is undertaken in a manner sensitive to environmental, health, or other regulatory objectives.”

However, Dr Patricia Ranald from fair trade group AFTINET told ABC News Online that Australia’s attempt to include specific exemptions shows that it has no faith in this catch-all provision.

“Our Government has previously given assurances that general protections or exemptions for health, environment and public welfare would prevent such suits in the future,” she said.

“But the fact that they have named specific institutions, like the PBS and Medicare, as having to be exempted from ISDS reveals that the general protections are not adequate.”

The provision that lists specific bodies such as the PBS and Medicare is also enclosed in square brackets, indicating that it has not yet been agreed to by other parties.

However, Australia’s agreement to be part of the ISDS section of the investment chapter is itself “subject to certain conditions”, although the text does not specify what these conditions are.

Patricia Ranald suspects they may be various trade-offs for export access.

“We know, again from previous statements by the Trade Minister, that those conditions include market access for US agricultural markets,” she responded.

“So what we learn from this text is that the Australian Government is using ISDS as a bargaining chip.”……..

Consumer group Choice has welcomed Australia’s apparent resistance to blanket ISDS provisions, however it would like more transparency about what is being negotiated.

“Although we have only been able to hear about this through unofficial leaks, it is encouraging that the Australian negotiators haven’t yet conceded completely over investor state dispute settlement,” Choice chief executive Alan Kirkland said in a statement.

“Although Australia seems to be resisting this chapter as drafted, we need to know what the conditions are that would see us sign up to it.” http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-26/trans-pacific-partnership-leaked-chapter-raises-regulatory-conc/6350584

March 27, 2015 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | General News