Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the amendments be agreed to.

I would like to reflect on the goodwill and cooperation, I think it's fair to say, between the member for Blaxland, as the shadow trade minister, and myself, over the passage of this amended bill. We had some government amendments, as the House would know, which were put through—again, building on the dialogue and goodwill that extends across the chamber.

I was happy to incorporate two amendments that the Labor Party put forward. The first opposition amendment added to the government amendment which was passed in the House of Representatives stipulates that businesses will have to certify in writing their reasonable belief that Efic support for overseas direct investment will result in a net increase in the number of people employed in Australia. The second opposition amendment ensures that large businesses with annual revenue of $150 million or more certify to Efic that they will not move overseas the whole or a substantial part of the business as a result of Efic support for an overseas direct investment transaction. This requirement codifies Efic's existing policy to ensure that its support for overseas direct investment will not result in plant closure or net job losses in Australia. I thank the member for Blaxland for the constructive dialogue that we've had. It has been a positive dialogue. We are both committed to doing the best thing by Australian businesses, and we've been able to find middle ground on this bill.

I would reinforce that the big positive from the passage of this Efic legislation has been the ability to ensure that the government's agenda of providing broader support to a wide range of Australian businesses—the government's agenda around boosting export, boosting export potential and providing support to small, medium and large businesses in Australia to help them realise their full potential—is achieved. With those remarks, I commend the bill.

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