Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to briefly speak on the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties' report No. 181: Comprehensive and progressive agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, more commonly known to the public as the TPP treaty.

I, like many Australians, am concerned with a number of aspects of this treaty, which the Australian government signed up to on 8 March 2018. I want to make it clear that I and Centre Alliance are not opponents of free trade, but we do recognise that there are legitimate public interests that need to be balanced against free trade. We all want to see a more prosperous and inclusive Australia, but free trade is a means to an end. It is not an end in itself.

The issue that most Australians are concerned about is the investor-state dispute settlement clause, which would give unprecedented power to corporations to sue national governments and undermine our democratic sovereignty. That sovereignty and integrity of our democracy should not be delegated lightly. I'm concerned about the implications for food labelling, and that labour market testing provisions negotiated by Australia are significantly weaker than those negotiated by other countries in the treaty negotiations. I'm perplexed as to why our government would do that.

I recognise that international analysis of the benefits of signatory countries has been undertaken, and that a publicly available summary of the national interest analysis has been undertaken by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. However, I am deeply concerned that we are yet to see the publication of the comprehensive modelling and related analysis from government, and my team would certainly be expecting to see that.

If the Australian parliament is to support the enabling legislation of this treaty, we need to be able to understand the full suite of costs and benefits that are attached to this agreement before we vote on it. I do recognise that there may be sensitivities in the modelling that require confidentiality. But now that the treaty has been signed, there is no good reason to withhold that analysis from the parliament.

As a related point, I'm concerned at the lack of detailed post analysis undertaken by the department on previous preferential trade agreements. In summary, although I reserve my position on the enabling legislation, the Customs Amendment (Trans-Pacific Partnership Implementation) Bill 2018, I request that the government provide the modelling and analysis that would allow me and my team at Centre Alliance to make a fully informed decision on the value of this treaty to Australia.

Debate adjourned.

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