"Government bars unions from ‘seat at the table’ in trade talks", 1 September 2021

No 10 and the trade department are blocking trade unions from sensitive trade talks despite unions’ offers to sign confidentiality agreements, according to leading labour representatives.

Business groups are allowed to scrutinise key details and some draft text of trade deals, but for more than a year, trade unions have been prevented from offering meaningful input on employment law and workers’ rights within secretive groups set up by the Department for International Trade (DIT)...

...The TUC’s exclusion comes as the government is trying to secure deals with Australia, New Zealand, and other members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) as part of its effort to join the trade bloc. This bloc includes countries such as Brunei which do not recognise labour laws, according to the TUC...

...Other concerns about joining the CPTPP include investor state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanisms, which can allow legal disputes to be settled behind closed doors...