New Zealand has refused to release a confidential government briefing paper that Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters claims contains proposals for preferential visa treatment for Indian nationals under the proposed India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
According to a report by RNZ News, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford declined a request to disclose the document, saying it is being withheld to protect the confidentiality of advice provided by ministers and officials while policy decisions are still under consideration. She said the public interest in releasing the paper does not outweigh the need to maintain that confidentiality.
