Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

Can I thank the member for Lindsay for her question, and commend her on the wonderful representation of the people of Lindsay: the people in Penrith and along the Nepean river in Western Sydney. The free-trade agreement offers enormous opportunities for the aged care sector in Australia, and that is because the free-trade agreement will allow wholly Australian owned and operated hospitals and aged care institutions to be established in China. Consider the size, the enormity of the potential market in China. Currently, there are about 194 million people aged 60 and over in China, and that number will actually grow significantly as the Chinese population ages. The Chinese plan over the next six years to double the number of aged care beds in the country to 3.8 million. They predict that the workforce in aged care in China will grow from a current workforce of about one million people to about 10 million people by 2020. So this is an enormous opportunity for Australia, as the member for Lindsay asks about, in terms of the aged care sector. Imagine the possibilities for the aged care sector in China: the home care services programs and the enormous expansion that will occur there; the construction and the operation of living units and apartments for retired and older people; the design and planning of aged care; the infrastructure investment that will go on as part of this; and of course the training and education opportunities for the enormous growth in the aged care sector in China. That is no doubt why those in the aged care sector, the leadership of the aged care sector in Australia, have welcomed this agreement. Professor John Kelly, the CEO of Aged & Community Services Australia, said that the new China-Australia Free Trade Agreement will motivate more organisations involved with the delivery of services to Australia's ageing population to consider the opportunities that come with international trade. Professor Kelly went on:

We are really excited about this agreement.

Patrick Reid, the CEO of Leading Age Services Australia, said:

And Australia does punch above its weight in care services provision.

In terms of export potential, there are already providers … operating in other countries and as a result Australia is well placed to import or export skills and services to those markets

He went on to say that this would see a surge in that activity. This is going to mean investment for Australian companies and returns to Australia; it is going to mean that more workers will have jobs as a result of this agreement. This is another example of a can-do government getting on with the job of building a better Australia.

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