Opponents of the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal fear the deal's more controversial clauses may make a comeback amid reports US President Donald Trump has done a backflip and wants to rejoin.

US President Donald Trump has asked his trade advisers to look at re-joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a multinational trade pact the US withdrew from last year.

But US correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking it's a shocking reversal for a president who campaigned so strongly against the TPP.

Trump was scathing about the TPP (now the 11-member CPTPP) during his election campaign and withdrawing his country was one of his first acts as president.

Arnold says, "[Trump] has said things like this:' The trans-Pacific Partnership is another disaster, done and pushed by special interests who want to rape our country'."

It was thrown into limbo last year when Trump quashed America's involvement, citing concerns about US jobs.

But the US backing out allowed the remaining members to renegotiate some of its more controversial clauses.

 

New Zealand's government was pleased to announce earlier this year the 22 changes gave protection for government drug-buying agency Pharmac and dropped extension to copyright and patent lengths.

But those clauses were only "suspended" and not entirely cut out of the deal, leaving room for a possible change of heart by the United States.

A vehement opponent on the deal, law professor Jane Kelsey, now says with parliament considering the laws to ratify the agreement, the government needed to make clear what its stance on a US return would be.

"The government needs to tell New Zealanders if it would veto the reactivation of the suspended items," she said.

"It won't be good enough for the government to say the entry of the US is hypothetical or that it can't show its hand ahead of such negotiations."

When he announced the details of the final deal earlier this year, Trade Minister David Parker conceded while New Zealand would strongly fight the reinstatement of some of the suspended clauses, it could not stop them single- handedly.

"In the end, a lot of those things are consensus-driven," he told reporters.
Comment has been requested from Mr Parker.

The Green Party opposed the revamped deal, with co-leader James Shaw saying the risk of a US backflip was too high.

The CPTPP is made up of Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

It was signed in March.

Trump has frequently talked tough on trade.

His most recent push has been to order tariffs on steel and aluminium imports and he has threatened to impose duties on imports from China, triggering fears of a global trade war