Obama Signs Official Letter of Intent to Join the TPP

In Australia, the country’s trade and investment minister Andrew Robb said the release of the text to the public honoured a commitment from all member countries to do so before it was officially signed.

Legal verification of the text will continue in the coming weeks, according to a statement from the New Zealand Government.

“When a trade transaction is simplified between TPPA signatory countries, why is the setting up of workers’ union not simplified?” he said, and contended that the agreement reduced the role of labour unions.

“These standards are at the core of the agreement and are fully enforceable – which means we can bring trade sanctions against countries that don’t step up their game”.

When the agreement was announced during the federal election campaign, Stephen Harper hailed it as a landmark deal, but also promised a $4.3 billion package for dairy farmers and $1 billion for the auto sector.

Negotiators had tried to exhaust all the issues in the talks that led to the agreement reached in Atlanta in late October.

It includes participation from the USA, along with Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

TPP is a 12-country deal that would slash tariffs with the goal of promoting economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region.

President Obama faced harsh criticism from many top Democrats who fought the Pacific Rim trade agreement after it was released early Thursday.

The government will examine what impact the TPP agreements will have, and after reporting its assessment to the National Assembly and holding public hearings, make a decision on how to approach the mega trading bloc.

Pharmaceutical companies, the Hollywood film industry, tobacco multinationals and technology leaders all have a stake in how their intellectual property is protected and their interests are enforced.

The 20-strong group was protesting outside a Dunedin information session, one of three scheduled nationwide TPP roadshow tours, which highlighted key outcomes of the agreement.

The White House says the deal eliminates more than 18,000 taxes that countries impose on USA exports.

“I understand that renegotiation may be hard, particularly with so many parties involved”, Sen.

Mohamed Shafie said it was still not too late for the government to ensure the rights of workers were protected and improved as the TPPA has still to be ratified by all participating countries.