Former Prime Minister Sir John Key slams ‘clown’ opponents of India free trade agreement
Former New Zealand Prime Minister Sir John Key has publicly criticized opponents of the new free trade agreement with India, calling them 'clowns.' The deal faces political friction regarding investment commitments and immigration clauses.
Why it matters
The trade deal is a significant economic policy shift for New Zealand, and the public disagreement highlights internal political tensions within the government coalition.
Anyone opposed to New Zealand’s free trade agreement (FTA) with India is “a clown”, Sir John Key says.
The former Prime Minister took aim at those against the agreement – signed in April – which was vocally opposed before and after by Government coalition partner NZ First.
“I reckon if you’re opposed to the FTA, you’re a clown and you don’t have much knowledge about economics, because here are the economics”, Key told the Mike Hosking Breakfast.
“They are 1.4 billion people, we are 5 million. They have enormous restrictions on us going into their market. We got rid of all of ours under the Douglas-Lange Government.
“We’re giving up nothing. They might not be giving up everything. Yes, of course it would be so much better if we had better dairy provisions and the likes, but actually, they’re giving up a lot.”
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in