Tiriti Analysis
New Zealand - United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement
The need for a gold standard agreement
Countries Involved
New Zealand and European Union with 27 member states:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden
The Crown in England and the Crown in Aotearoa signed a free trade agreement on 28 February 2022 and it entered into force in May 2023.
Ngā Toki Whakarururanga called for a gold standard agreement that honoured Te Tiriti o Waitangi and protected Māori rights and responsibilities.
Instead, the Tiriti assessment reveals threats to fundamental Māori rights and values, especially in chapters on intellectual property, digital trade and foreign investment, with a hollow and unenforceable Māori Trade and Economic Cooperation Chapter.
Our Analysis And Commentary On The New Zealand ‐ United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement
Gold Standard Text for NZ UK FTA:
Honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi – The Treaty of Waitangi
NZ-UK Free Trade Agreement: “a missed opportunity”
Press release, 1 March 2022
UK FTA: What and Why
Why a Tiriti-based analysis is necessary
Te Tiriti o Waitangi me He Whakaputanga: Tino Rangatiratanga
Lack of Māori involvement in the Crown's NZUKFTA considerations, Crown neglect of redress, and the current opportunities.
Mātauranga Māori, Data and Digital Trade
The relationship between Te Tiriti, digital trade and the UKFTA
UK FTA: What it means for Mātauranga Māori, WAI 262 and Te Pae Tawhiti
Māori Trade and Economic Cooperation Chapter
Contrast between the expressed Māori vision for a Tiriti o Waitangi chapter and the actual content of the final text which falls short of addressing these concerns.
UK FTA: Māori Business, Kaimahi and Wāhine Māori
Outlines the lack of direct benefit for Māori exporters and NZ overall and highlights concerns regarding speculative gains and inadequate provisions for Māori businesses and workers