New Zealand minister slammed for ‘butter chicken tsunami’ comments about planned FTA with India

A senior New Zealand minister has sparked outrage by deriding a planned free trade deal with India as a “butter chicken tsunami”.

Wellington is poised to sign a free trade agreement with India in New Delhi next week.

The New Zealand government has hailed it as a “once in a generation” deal that will give its businesses access to the world’s most populated country’s vast domestic market.

But its ruling coalition partner, the right-wing populist NZ First party, has pulled support over fears it will open the country’s borders to thousands of Indian nationals.

The split will mean the government will need the opposition Labour Party to vote in favour when legislation goes before parliament in the coming months.

On Monday, the party’s deputy leader and Minister for Regional Development, Shane Jones, said his party would “never accept” the deal.

“I don’t care how much criticism we get, I am just never going to agree with a butter chicken tsunami coming to New Zealand,” Jones told Reality Check Radio.

The comments were widely condemned as racist by Indian community groups in New Zealand.

“It’s incredibly worrying for everybody,” Shanti Patel, president of the Auckland Indian Association, told public broadcaster RNZ.

And opposition lawmaker Priyanca Radhakrishnan described them as “outright racism”.

“It’s unacceptable and politicians shouldn’t be making statements like he has,” she said.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Jones’ comments were “unhelpful”.

Officials have told AFP the deal could see more than 20,000 Indian migrants entering the country.

NZ First has also pointed to concerns about a NZ$34 billion (US$20bn) investment New Zealand is bound by the deal to make in India over a 15-year period.

Labour Party officials are yet to decide whether they will support it, citing similar concerns regarding that investment.