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The Commonwealth's Treaty-Making Process, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

Considering both the situation in Australia and the United States, the Commonwealth’s Treaty-Making Process is broken. There have been significant problems in respect of transparency, public participation, empirical analysis, and parliamentary oversight. In addition, there has been a concern that the Commonwealth’s Treaty-Making Process has failed to adequately address matters of fair trade. In particular, there is a need to engage a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of international agreements upon the environment, public health, labor rights, and human rights. Such problems have been particularly pronounced during the negotiations over the regional trade agreement, the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Having participated in …