Govt defends inking trade deal

Speaking to Dairy News from Ottawa in Canada where he's been having trade talks, he refuted DCANZ chairman Malcolm Bailey's claims and says he was wrong in his assessment and calculations about the value of the deal.

He says he understands the disappointment that the figures that NZ aspired to get at the start of the negotiating process were not reached, but says that's the reality of trade negotiations.

"We have made huge progress across all sectors including beef and dairy and I am confident that we can build on these opportunities over time.

"The FTA is a great deal for NZ because we have achieved the removal of barriers across the vast majority of products going into that valuable market and access to dairy products we haven't had for a long time. This deal provides more valuable opportunities for NZ and one that can grow in the future," he says.

O'Connor says one of the complicating factors in the negotiations was the Ukraine crisis which he says put more focus on food security.

He says unfortunately in the eyes of the EU, this translated into shorting up their own production rather than opening the doors to imports. He says that protectionist approach has always been a part of the EU's doctrine.

"Even in spite of that we have been able to negotiate with them a commercially meaningful deal that is of huge value to us," he says.

O’Connor has rejected suggestions that NZ should have not signed the deal and continued on with the negotiations. He says they considered every option but notes that it became increasingly apparent that if NZ didn’t conclude the negotiations when they did, things were going to get a lot worse for us as the geopolitical realities hit home.O’Connor has rejected suggestions that NZ should have not signed the deal and continued on with the negotiations. He says they considered every option but notes that it became increasingly apparent that if NZ didn’t conclude the negotiations when they did, things were going to get a lot worse for us as the geopolitical realities hit home

“The fact is this deal compares pretty favourably in all areas. In reality our trade agreement was a unique one with a grouping of 450 million people, which was beneficial to both and that is not easy to do. The EU is very conscious that every one of these agreements sets precedents on how they open up to other countries that want a FTA,” he says.

Damien O'Connor says NZ and EU will meet annually after the deal has been ratified to discuss the FTA and what areas that might be adjusted over time. He says it's possible but not certain that NZ could end up with greater volumes, but adds, the reality is that our sectors don't produce enough product to fill existing demand.

"If we were going to shift it into the EU then that would be at the expense of other customers," he says.

The deal will now go through a ratification process in both jurisdictions and could take at least a year to be finally approved.