Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

This is one of the best trade deals that China has ever offered. We need to recognise that China 20 years ago was the eighth largest economy in the world. Today it is the second largest economy in the world. We have been a massive beneficiary of that. Each year, we export $150 billion of Australian goods to China. In return they export $50 billion. With $150 billion of trade each year, $100 billion to the benefit of Australia and $50 billion to the benefit of China, for every dollar we spend on Chinese goods, they spend $2 on our goods. To put in in perspective, China even with a seven per cent growth rate represents 30 per cent of the world's growth this year

As I was just informed by the finance minister of China, Lou Jiwei, in discussions at the G20 and as Governor Zhou also advised the G20 and, previously, Chairman Xu, the head of the NDRC, advised Minister Robb and me, the transition in the Chinese economy is going to take five to eight years to go from a focus on investment to a focus on consumption. During that transition of the economy in China, we are going to go from a major beneficiary of Chinese demand for our exports to an even greater beneficiary of Chinese demand for our exports.

The bottom line is this: if you care about well-paid Australian jobs, you will vote for the free trade agreement with China. It is as simple as that. Give us another lecture on growth. Give us another lecture on jobs. It means zero if you vote against the free trade agreement with China, because China is going to be the major driver of global growth over the next decade and we are the best friend China has in trade and services from our region—if we continue down the path of removing the barriers.

And what are those barriers on the ground? They apply 20 per cent taxes to Australian dairy produce. They apply a 25 per cent tax to our beef exports. They apply a 23 per cent tax to our lamb exports and a 20 per cent tax to our wine exports. All are gone under this trade agreement with China, which means we can get more wine, more beef, more lamb, more dairy. In fact, China applied a three per cent tariff to our coal, so, if you care about coal jobs, they are going to abolish their tax on our coal from day 1. If you care about jobs in Queensland, if you care about jobs around the country then support the free trade agreement with China.

The opportunity going forward is even greater. The services industry represents more than 70 per cent of the Australian economy but just 17 per cent of our exports. It is a huge opportunity for our exporters as China moves from its investment phase to its consumption phase. That means more and better-paying jobs in Australia. The evidence is clear: as a result of the trade agreement that we have negotiated, all of those restrictions that apply to financial services, legal services and key areas of aged services and building and construction, the Chinese are removing the barriers.

Let me say one thing about the political efforts of the Labor Party and the CFMEU. I have absolutely no doubt following discussions with the leadership in China that they will walk away from the free trade agreement if this is held up or if the Labor Party knocks it off in the Senate. Because of the transition in the Chinese economy, where they have massive policy priorities, they will not return to the negotiating table, because they have other priorities in their domestic economy. So this is not a game. I say to the Labor Party and the CFMEU: this is not a political game. It has taken a decade to get this agreement, and you know what? The Chinese will wait at least another decade to come back to the table if the best agreement they have ever offered is rejected by the Australian parliament as a result of the politics of the Labor Party.

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