Back and forth continues over the India FTA as Labour leader Chris Hipkins seeks more details on investment and visas for students, says it's being rushed. National cites '4 months of engaging extensively with Labour'

Cracks are appearing to deepen through the India Free Trade Agreement (FTA), as Labour accuses National of pushing through a rushed, secretive deal as the clock ticks for it to be signed. 

But National is maintaining the Opposition has been given ample time to delve into the deal, with Trade Minister Todd McClay telling interest.co.nz on Monday evening: "We've had four months of engaging extensively with Labour on this. This includes phone calls, in-person meetings and sessions where officials were able to answer their questions and provide the information they asked for, including official advice.”

"We expect there is likely to be one more meeting as a result of an additional request made towards the end of the last joint meeting," McClay said. 

National and ACT need Labour's support for the proposed FTA because NZ First, their coalition partner, isn't supporting the deal. In December NZ First leader Winston Peters said the deal was neither free nor fair, and gives too much away, especially on immigration, without getting enough in return for New Zealanders, including on dairy.

RNZ’s IndoNZ reported last week that India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal told reporters in New Delhi: “We also had meetings with Mr Todd McClay … who will be coming to India in the fourth week of April, when we plan to sign the free trade agreement finalised with New Zealand.”

When asked whether he would travel to India in April to sign the FTA and if there were any plans for him to head to India then, McClay said: “India and New Zealand are working towards legal verification of the text and have been discussing what would be an appropriate time to sign.”

“It is a very positive sign that India is eager to sign the FTA quickly - which is something supported by the wider New Zealand business and export community.”

“As with all trade agreements, Parliament and the public will have an opportunity to fully scrutinise the agreement in open session,” McClay said.

'A rushed deal'

On Tuesday, Labour leader Chris Hipkins called the India FTA a rushed deal, saying; “the negotiation is far faster than any other agreement and far more secretively than any other agreement New Zealand has entered into”.

Hipkins made the comments on NZME's Ryan Bridge TODAY. He also said the India FTA has clauses that none of the country’s other agreements have.

Hipkins’ comments come after business leaders released an open letter on Monday calling for all political parties to back the India FTA.

Hipkins told Bridge on Tuesday that Labour had gone back to the Government wanting more detail around investment and visas for students.

“There is no ability in the agreement to cap international students and given the Government has extended work rights to students, we are concerned about the potential implications of that in an environment where unemployment is increasing,” Hipkins said.

“We want to understand who is allowed to come under this agreement and who isn’t,” he said.

The investment clause was also something Labour wanted more detail on.

“They’re committing us to $33 billion dollars going out of New Zealand into India over the next 15 years."

"We’ve got real questions about whether that’s realistic, where that money is going to come from and what the consequences will be if New Zealand doesn’t achieve that," Hipkins said.

On the call from businesses to sign the deal, Hipkins said they had published an open letter asking Labour to sign a deal that they haven’t read.

When Bridge said those businesses had been briefed, Hipkins said the briefing Labour received when the Government first announced the deal, sounded like a good deal.

“When we’ve actually read the deal, it doesn’t match up with what they told us was in it.”

Hipkins said this is something they all have a responsibility to understand “before we plow on to signing this deal”.

When asked about the clauses, Hipkins said there was a clause in the agreement that; “allows India to claw back the concessions they’re granting to New Zealand if we don’t meet their expectations around New Zealand investment in India”.

Peters also spoke out about the letter which was signed by BusinessNZ and 28 exporters and industry associations like Zespri, Seafood New Zealand, Māori Kiwifruit Growers, and ExportNZ.

“How [BusinessNZ] and the 28 other businesses and associations could have signed up to support the India FTA without knowing what is in it is an appalling commentary on them all," Peters said on social media.

“This is tantamount to those businesses signing a contract blindfolded.”

Back and forth

On Monday Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking the deal shouldn’t be political.

“It’s a Kiwi thing. It’s actually not to do with National or Labour, or left or right or any of that stuff.”

“It’s actually about what is the right thing to do for New Zealand and that’s why on every other trade agreement, you’ve seen bipartisan support,” Luxon said.

In times like this, Luxon said; “you want as much optionality as to where you can send your products as possible”.

When it came to working with Labour on the deal, he also told reporters on Monday afternoon; “there’s been very constructive and good conversations undertaken with, I think, a tremendous amount of goodwill”.

“We’ve made our Ministers and officials available to the Labour side in many meetings. Now there’s been an exchange of letters and it’s just essentially alleviating their concerns that they may be raising and helping them understand why we think this is such a fantastic deal.”

But Hipkins on Monday, said Labour had been asking the Government for a response to their concerns for almost two months. “They are yet to provide the detail we have requested.”

"There are issues and inconsistencies that still need to be clarified by the Government to ensure any deal works in the long-term interest of New Zealanders," he said.

"Once we’ve received the details and worked through all the advice, we will discuss as a caucus and make a decision about whether to support the legislation."

On a potential signing, Hipkins said Labour had not been informed by the Government but the party had seen the news reported.

“Signing a free trade agreement if you don’t have the majority support in Parliament, and at this point they don’t, would be recklessly irresponsible.”