Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to the Cabinet Secretary, Senator Sinodinos, representing the Minister for Trade and Investment. George Kahale is chairman of the world's leading arbitration law firm defending governments being sued under investor state dispute settlement provisions. Mr Kahale has said this week that the supposed safeguards in the investment chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement do not immunise our government and the Australian people from being sued by big corporations using ISDS. Mr Kahale also said that article 9.15, which supposedly provides safeguards, is negated by the phrase 'unless otherwise consistent with this chapter'. Mr Kahale also said that if the trade minister is saying that Australia is not at risk of being sued for making new or changing existing environmental regulations then the minister is wrong. Senator, do you agree with Mr Kahale's assessment that claims Australia is protected by supposed new safeguards in the TPP are, in his words, 'nonsense'? Do you agree that the words 'unless otherwise consistent with this chapter' negate these protections?