Free trade deals must not overrule NZ economic sovereignty

Free trade deals with countries such as China must not get in the way of New Zealand’s economic sovereignty, said Green Party Co-leader Dr Russel Norman today.

New Zealand signed a free trade deal with China under the last Labour Government in 2008. The NZ-China-Free Trade Agreement will create difficulties for New Zealand should the current Key Government wish to tighten New Zealand’s overseas investment rules. Free trade deals contain investment chapters that stop governments tightening foreign investment laws beyond those in place at the time of signing.

“Labour and National Governments’ obsession with signing free trade deals has weakened our ability to protect New Zealand from overseas interests buying up our productive land,” said Dr Norman.

“While signing up to the China-NZ free trade deal may have made it harder for New Zealand to tighten our overseas investment rules it is certainly not impossible.

“New Zealand must tackle this issue now to protect our future economic sovereignty.

“Tens of thousands of hectares of our productive land has been transferred into foreign ownership in the last five years.

“The Overseas Investment Office that rubber-stamped this massive land transfer cannot be relied upon to act in New Zealand’s best interests.

“The Key Government needs to tighten the laws on foreign ownership of land,” said Dr Norman.

“If that means renegotiating the terms of some of our trade deals then so be it. It is vital that we act to protect our fundamental national interests.”

Note: Russel Norman will be raising this issue in the House today at Question Two.

Link to frog blog post exploring this issue: http://blog.greens.org.nz/2010/08/03/ftas-and-foreign-ownership-of-land/