Winston Peters' FTA attacks 'just dog whistling' - Jacobi

The New Zealand First Leader and Foreign Minister says the free trade agreement with India gives too much away - especially on immigration - and does not return enough to NZ, especially dairy.

However, Jacobi says the FTA gives India some marginal improvements in immigration standards for skilled professionals and students, but by no means opens the floodgates. He says NZ is desperately in need of workers.

"He's just dog whistling and feels that he could have negotiated something better. Somehow, I doubt it," Jacobi told Rural News.

Peters says NZ First won't support the ratification of the NZ/India FTA when it comes before Parliament.

Again, Jacobi says such an attitude is beyond the pale. NZ First also didn't support the China FTA. He adds he has no idea what the Green Party will do. 

He says ideally there should be bipartisan support on trade deals such as this. What Peters is doing is "pure political nonsense".

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"How can he seriously continue as Foreign Minister and not supporting this FTA. India is a major foreign policy player and sooner or later he's going to have to meet his Indian counterpart and explain why the deal wasn't good enough. We'll just have to wait and see what happens," he says.

Finally, Jacobi says it would be appalling if the Labour Party didn't support the deal. He says although National wants to take the full credit for the FTA, in fact the early groundwork for it was done under Labour Trade Minister Damien O'Connor.

"So, it would be somewhat hypocritical if Labour didn't support the FTA," he says.