UK poised to join major Asia-Pacific trade bloc

Trade Minister Damien O’Connor. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The UK is poised to join a major Asia-Pacific trade bloc in time for New Zealand’s hosting of key trade ministers in Auckland at Matariki weekend this July.

Trade Minister Damien O’Connor, who is now the chair of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) Commission, is optimistic the eleven existing members will soon reach a common accord with the UK on its accession agreement

“They can then be at the table as members and meet with us here in New Zealand,” said O’Connor. “It will be something to really celebrate.”

Expectations that the UK’s bid to join the trade bloc would soon be green-lit followed a recent breakthrough by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s on the detail of the UK’s post-Brexit pact with the EU.

There had been reported concerns that Britain‘s threat to unilaterally rewrite its Brexit treaty with the EU over Northern Ireland trade arrangements had raised concerns about the UK’s role in the Asia-Pacific rules-based trade bloc.

There have been other bilateral fish-hooks between the UK and some existing members. But recent talks in Vietnam have been positive and they are expected to be resolved in the final stages of the negotiations.

O’Connor points to the value of having another G7 nation outside of Japan within the bloc. “As a nation that relies on trade, security, consistency and predictability in trade (having the UK) in our part of the world is of incredible value.”

The geostrategic imperative was recently emphasised by UK negotiator Graham Zebedee who observes the global economy is facing multiple headwinds as it builds back from the pandemic and the world pushes back against Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and tackles climate change. “Global co-operation is vital to tackle these challenges, and international trade has a crucial role to play in providing stability, prosperity and growth,” says Zebedee.

“The UK will be a strong voice on the global stage, making the case for our shared values, high standards and closer partnerships.

“We will use our membership of global institutions such as the Group of Seven and the Group of 20, our status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council and our diplomatic network, the world’s fourth-largest, to champion the broader shared values of the CPTPP, such as tackling climate change, growing the green economy and developing digital standards.”

O’Connor expects the UK will bed in the CPTPP agreement in short order and look to ratify within six months of accession.

New Zealand is chair of CPTPP for 2023 and the Ministerial Meeting, held in Auckland, will be the centrepiece of our host year,” O’Connor adds. “Trade is a top priority for the Government because it underpins our economic security.

“Since 2017 we have secured four new Free Trade Agreements, upgraded three, and significantly grown opportunity for our exporters.”

He says the opportunity to showcase New Zealand as a destination and lead the development of CPTPP as an open plurilateral process is “of huge value to us”.