The Turnbull Government’s hopes of resurrecting the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal have received another blow, with Japan declaring the pact pointless without US involvement. From The Australian:
A Japanese government spokesman called talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal “meaningless” without the US, but said his government will keep trying to persuade the US about the deal’s importance.
“Without the US, it would lose the fundamental balance of benefits,” Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda said at a news conference Tuesday.
He said Japan isn’t considering trying to move ahead with the TPP without the US at the moment…
So, the two biggest economies in the TPP now won’t be involved, meaning the pact cannot possibly be ratified (since 85% of members’ joint GDP is required for the deal to proceed). And still Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull continues to farcically promote the TPP in a lame attempt to wedge Labor. Also via The Australian:
[Turnbull] argued that Australia should not give up on the agreement.
He also escalated his attack on Bill Shorten as a weak “down under protectionist” for turning his back on the deal, accusing the Labor leader of walking away from Australian jobs and abandoning the free trade cause championed by former Labor leaders Bob Hawke and Paul Keating.
Mr Turnbull framed his ongoing promotion of the TPP and free trade as a defence of “Aussie jobs” and warned that rising protectionism was not a ladder to escape low growth but a “shovel to dig it deeper”…
“Losing the United States from the TPP is a big loss. There’s no question about that. But we’re not about to walk away from our commitment to Australian jobs…
“It’s shameful that Bill Shorten would throw in the towel. What a weakling. What a weakling. A statement in Washington and he gives up… He can go around in as many fluro vests as he likes. He is a walking, talking threat to Australian jobs.”
Give it up Malcolm. The TPP is dead as a dodo. Moreover, it was never going to promote Australian jobs. Stop wasting everybody’s time.
