Simon Crean (Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Lyons for his question and his continuing deep interest in the matters of trade. Last week I attended, along with the Prime Minister, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Treasurer, the APEC meetings in Singapore. This was the 20th anniversary of APEC. Bob Hawke was also there and that reminded everyone about the key role that Australia played in the formation of this organisation 20 years ago.

I am asked about the key outcomes from the meetings. The first was the very strong commitment from the ministers present and the leaders in relation to the Doha Round, not only because of the importance of it as an economic stimulus, a stimulus that does not impact on the budget, but also about its importance in stemming returns or likely returns to protectionism.

Another important outcome from the meeting was the decision and the announcement by President Obama to participate in the Trans-Pacific Partnership. This represented a major contribution and commitment by the United States to trade liberalisation and it was a concrete demonstration of a strong ambition in this area. This augurs well for its commitment in relation to the Doha Round.

It was also a major commitment to the Asia-Pacific region, and was welcomed as such. The commitment is to participate in the development of this partnership as a high-quality free trade agreement, a 21st century operation with all sectors—goods, services and investment—included. The involvement and commitment of the United States brought important critical mass to making sure that this announcement carried appropriate weight, and Australia is to host the first of four meetings of officials next year to advance this. Properly developed, this can be the bridge to a free trade area for the Asia-Pacific, so this was a very important breakthrough.

Another important outcome was the commitment of those involved to decrease the costs of doing business in the Asia-Pacific region by 25 per cent by 2015. Obviously this is a very important commitment. It will add to the efficiencies and benefits of trade liberalisation in the region. An important study came out whilst we were there that showed that there was an APEC effect, that trade volume and participation were growing much faster in that region than the rest of the world.

Finally, the agenda that was struck at APEC going forward was terribly important as well in terms of more strengthened economic integration within the region. Not only is it a focus of reform at the border, with tariff reductions, and reform behind the border—critical, given the services and investment dimension—but also reform across the border, with a focus on getting more efficiency in logistics movement in the area. It was a very significant meeting. The benefit of the organisation is well established and it was a pleasure to have participated in it.

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