Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Phạm Bình Minh delivered a report to the National Assembly yesterday to address a number of issues related to the approval of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) including the agreement’s impact, labour organisations and potential amendments to current laws and regulations necessitated by the signing of the partnership.

Minh said various Government agencies are tasked with monitoring the impact of the partnership on Vietnamese businesses and the country’s economy as a whole. During the negotiation phase, Government agencies have been collecting feedback and opinions from numerous trade organisations and businesses that are likely to be affected by the CPTPP.

The text of the Trans Pacific Partnership, the CPTPP’s predecessor, has been public in its entirety since February 2016. A detailed report prepared by the Ministry of Planning and Investment on the numerous impacts of the partnership on the country’s growth, GDP, import-export performance and production has been submitted to the NA along with reports produced by the World Bank and other international experts.

On the topic of labour organisations, Minh said the CPTPP will largely follow standards set by the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) 1998 Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. Việt Nam, as a member of the ILO, will continue to respect and implement the standards.

Minh said the Government of Việt Nam supports the right for workers to form labour organisations as long as their activities are lawful and transparent and they co-operate with local authorities.

The deputy PM said the country’s lawmaking bodies are in the process of reviewing regulations to make amendments regarding the CPTPP. The anti-corruption law has been submitted to the NA for approval.

Other laws including the Labour Code, the Criminal Code and the Prosecution Code are to follow suit. According to a Government timeline, the Law on Intellectual Property, the Law on Food Safety and the Law on Insurance Business could be up for review as soon as the start of the next NA meeting.

Source: Vietnamnews

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