Trade deal with US would not be one-way street - English
Prime Minister Bill English has softened his criticisms of a possible one-on-one trade deal with the United States, but is insisting it would not be done at any price.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump dangled the possibility of a one-on-one trade deal after formally withdrawing from the 12-nation Trans Pacific Partnership agreement, which includes New Zealand.
He said such deals would have a 30-day ‘‘out clause’’ .
Yesterday, English said it was yet to be seen what New Zealand could get from a bilateral deal with the US.
‘‘We wouldn’t do a deal at any price. The American President has made it clear he would expect significant benefits for the US. Now we would need to make sure there were significant benefits for New Zealand,’’ he said.
‘‘The new administration has got different views on trade than most governments. We remain an advocate of free trade and agreements like the TPP. If they have a different approach we’ll see that unfold over the months ahead. Certainly we will work with the policy as it is and try and get the best deal for New Zealand.’’
He expected Trade Minister Todd McClay would go to Washington soon ‘‘to try and get a handle on what they mean by free trade’’.
Ministers from the remaining TPP signatories - Brunei, Chile, Singapore, Australia, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru and Vietnam - were expected to meet over the next few months to consider the next steps, and English had asked McClay to prioritise that.
It would take a while to sort out who remains and who was committed to the TPP without the US or some other kind of agreement.
‘‘But I’m heartened by the fact that there’s a number of countries who are keen to continue advocating open markets and trade and we’ll want to be part of that discussion.’’
Meanwhile, English said New Zealand would not increase the number of refugees it took, after Trump also indicated a crack down on immigration from some countries.
He said New Zealand had increased its quota to about 1000, and was focused on doing a good job with them, but was not looking at an increase in numbers.
‘‘We spend something like $80,000 per family to make sure that they get settled in, because they’ve got to get language skills and we need to get them on a track to work,’’ he said.
‘‘We have set the quota at around about 1000 with different components in it.
‘‘There’s also asylum seekers and families so it adds up a bit,’’ English said.
‘‘We ... want to make sure we’ve got the capacity to do a really good job with the refugees before we go expanding the numbers.’’
Kiwis and Australians wanting to travel repeatedly to the United States may have to undertake an inperson interview with American officials to renew their US visas, under strict border rules US President Donald Trump is considering.
The Los Angeles Times, citing a draft copy of an executive order on immigration and refugees Trump is mulling, reported the visa interview waiver program could be suspended.
The program applies to certain categories of non-immigrant visas for Kiwis wanting to repeatedly travel to the US for reasons such as work or study, who would have to sit for an in-person interview under the new rules - probably at the US Consulate General in Auckland.
‘‘The Secretary of State shall immediately suspend the Visa Interview Waiver Program and ensure compliance with section 222 of the INA (Immigration and Nationality Act), which requires that all individuals seeking a nonimmigrant visa, undergo an inperson interview, subject to specific statutory exceptions,’’ the draft executive order states.
House of Travel commercial director Brent Thomas said Kiwis were keener than ever to travel Stateside. Last year, visitor numbers to the US were up more than 150,000, excluding business travel, and 2017 was shaping up to be another record year.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer said on Wednesday that Trump would announce later this week details on the ‘‘Keeping America Safe’’ plan.
Trump is also considering blocking all refugees from entering the US for 120 days and restricting visas for people from terror hot-spot nations Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
The draft order temporarily suspends the US refugee program while new vetting procedures are put in place and stops refugees from Syria being admitted indefinitely until a security screening review is completed.
Many of the asylum seekers on Nauru and Manus Island are from Syria and the other targeted terror hot spot countries.
‘‘I think the guiding principle for the president is keeping this country safe,’’ Spicer said.
The US-Australia deal involving refugees held on Nauru and Manus Island was struck last year when Barack Obama was president.
With Obama exiting the White House and Trump - who vowed to crack down on refugees while campaigning to be president - in power, the secretly negotiated deal could be doomed.
Powerful members of the Republican-controlled Congress were outraged when it was revealed Malcolm Turnbull and Obama had struck the agreements without their input.
If Trump torpedoes the refugee deal it will be the second major blow he has delivered to Australia this week.
Trump signed an executive order on Monday withdrawing America’s involvement in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement with Australia and 10 other Pacific countries, including New Zealand.
The Australian government, however, is holding out hope the strong relationship Australia has with the US will keep the refugee deal alive.
‘‘We look forward to working with President Trump, his administration, and in particular Secretary of Homeland Security General John Kelly, on this issue and many others of shared interest in the years ahead,’’ Australian Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said. Additional reporting from AAP