Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Todd McClay pulls off trade deal

Hands up who’s impressed with Todd McClay today?

That was a surprise this morning, wasn’t it?

He's managed to finally sing a free trade deal with the Gulf States, that we have as a country been working on for nearly 20 years and got nowhere with.

And it’s not that we didn't’ try - Boy did we try! Do you remember the Saudi sheep deal.

Geoffrey Miller: NZ’s breakthrough free trade deal with the Gulf

New Zealand’s new free trade agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council is a major win for both sides.

Todd McClay, New Zealand’s trade minister, announced the long-awaited deal on Thursday with his counterparts in Doha, Qatar. It is a remarkable, yet also surprising sudden success: the genesis of the agreement lies in talks that began in 2006.