Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties I present the committee’s report entitled Report 72: Treaties tabled on 29 November 2005 (2): amendments to the Statute of the Hague Conference on Private International Law of 31 October 1951; Universal Postal Union: Seventh Additional Protocol to the Constitution of 10 July 1964, as amended: Convention, and Final Protocol; General Regulations; annex G: settlement of disputes to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants; Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the Republic of Turkey on the Reciprocal Promotion and Protection of Investments.

Ordered that the report be made a parliamentary paper.

by leave—Report 72 contains the findings and recommendations of the committee’s review of four of the five treaty actions which were tabled in parliament on 29 November 2005. Members may recall that the committee’s review of a prisoner transfer agreement with Hong Kong was also tabled on that date and was included in Report 71. Report 71 was subsequently tabled in parliament last month. The four treaty actions included in Report 72 relate to amendments to private international law, amendments to the Universal Postal Union, amendments to the Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants and a promotion and protection of investments agreement with Turkey. I will comment on all four treaties reviewed.

The proposed amendments to the Statute of the Hague Conference on Private International Law allow regional economic integration organisations to seek membership of the conference, change the procedure for amending the statute and provide for the equal authenticity of the statute in French and English. At present, the European Community is the only REIO seeking membership of the Hague conference. The statute is the constitution of the Hague Conference on Private International Law, and these amendments represent the first changes made to the statute since it entered into force in 1945. There are currently 36 conventions that have been negotiated through the Hague conference.

The amendments to the Universal Postal Union and convention will assist in developing a more efficient and effective international postal service. The amendments to the Final Protocol to the Universal Postal Convention incorporate the reservations lodged by Australia and other Universal Postal Union members. Reservations applied to one country are applied on a reciprocal basis to other member countries. Australia’s reservations are outlined in the report.

Another treaty reviewed by the committee, the amendments to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, provides for new settlement dispute procedures to the convention. The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants aims to protect human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants. This treaty action provides for dispute settlement for the convention through arbitration, submission to the International Court of Justice and conciliation procedures. Under article 18 of the convention, parties are obliged to settle disputes through negotiation or other peaceful means. Parties may make a declaration accepting arbitration of the International Court of Justice. The convention provides that, where a party has not made a declaration or where parties to a dispute have not accepted the same means of dispute settlement, the default dispute settlement is conciliation. Australia is currently considering whether to make a declaration.

The committee also reviewed a promotion and protection of investments agreement with Turkey. This agreement will encourage and facilitate bilateral investment between Australia and Turkey. In view of the fact that Australia’s major trading partners have such agreements with Turkey, in 1999 the Australian government made an in-principle decision to negotiate an investment promotion and protection agreement with Turkey. Turkey is recognised by the International Monetary Fund as one of the highest returning markets on investment, with a relatively open and transparent investment regime. While investment between Australia and Turkey is currently small, this agreement will encourage and facilitate bilateral investment between countries, providing the potential for increased trade.

The committee heard that a number of Australian companies are currently looking at investing in Turkey over the next few years in the areas of energy, infrastructure and mining. Other Australian companies have already won tenders for development projects in Turkey, including a major investment by an Australian company in Turkey’s oil sector and other investments in the agriculture sector. Turkey’s new laws on mining and foreign investment are expected to continue to encourage foreign investment in the Turkish energy sector.

The committee also heard that Australia’s Turkish community was identified as a potential source of investment funds. However, the committee found that no formal consultation about the agreement had taken place with Australia’s Turkish community during the negotiating period. This reflects on the consultation undertaken in relation to the treaty, which the committee found had been inadequate and should have been undertaken.

In conclusion, the committee believes it is in Australia’s interest for the treaties considered in Report 72 to be ratified. I commend the report to the House.

Kim Wilkie (Swan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—The Joint Standing Committee on Treaties Report 72 contains a review of four treaties: amendments to the Hague Conference on Private International Law; amendments to the Universal Postal Union and convention; amendments to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants; and a promotion and protection of investments agreement with Turkey.

The amendments to the Hague Conference on Private International Law will help to improve the efficiency of and lessen costs and time delays in international private legal matters. The Hague conference works towards the progressive unification of the rules on private international law and operates in the areas of international legal cooperation and litigation; international protection of children, family law and property relations; and international commercial and finance law. Member states work to develop and produce conventions reflecting an agreed approach to an area of private international law, which may be accepted by member and nonmember countries alike.

The amendments to the Universal Postal Union and Universal Postal Convention incorporate Australia’s reservations and include the revision of postal security provisions for the exchange of information between member countries on maintaining the safe and secure transport of mail items; an outward mandatory registration service for priority and airmail letter-post items and a registration service for outbound non-priority and surface letter-post items but only to destinations for which there is no priority or airmail service; that postal administrations must establish delivery standards and targets for their inward letter-post items and parcels; that it is no longer mandatory to accept inquiries about the non-receipt of ordinary letter-post items; that senders of prohibited articles that cause damage to other postal items, postal officials or postal equipment are now liable for that damage; the establishment of a terminal dues system consisting of two subsystems; a target system applicable to industrialised countries and a transition system designed for developing countries; and the introduction of a quality of service fund designed to help developing nations improve their postal infrastructure and quality of service. The fund will ensure that countries and territories in most need of funds receive them.

The third treaty included in Report 72 amends the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. The role of the convention is to ban or phase out the production and use of internationally produced persistent organic pollutants, manage waste stockpiles of pollutants in an environmentally friendly and sound way and reduce or eliminate releases of unintentionally produced pollutants. This treaty action, however, provides for dispute settlement procedures for member countries to the convention.

Finally, the fourth treaty examined by the committee is a promotion and protection of investments agreement between Australia and Turkey. The committee found that, in light of Turkey’s accession to the European Union and the modernisation of the Turkish economy, foreign direct investment in 2005-06 is expected to more than double that of the previous year, to reach $US5 billion. Turkey also recently reduced significantly its corporate tax rate from 30 to 20 per cent and partnered this with a reduction of its bureaucratic investment procedures in an effort to attract foreign investment.

The committee received evidence that Australia’s investments in Turkey, as a high returning market with a prospect of a strong economy, are likely to lead to increased export and investment opportunities for both countries. The committee also heard that investment is likely to come from a number of big business areas such as energy, infrastructure and mining—which is very important for states like Western Australia—and also from Australia’s 100,000-strong Turkish community. As the chair has already stated, the committee found, however, that the consultation process undertaken in relation to the agreement was not adequate and concluded that formal consultation with Australia’s Turkish community should have been undertaken. Despite this reservation, the committee is of the view that binding treaty action be taken.

I would again like to take this opportunity of thanking the secretariat for all their hard work and effort in preparing this report and in the public hearings. I commend the report to the House.

Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House take note of the report.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with standing order 39(c), the debate is adjourned. The resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.