Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Trade and Investment or, as he is more commonly known, 'Mr Trifecta'. Will the minister outline how local industries and service providers in my home state of Victoria will benefit from the Australia-China free trade agreement?

Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Wannon. He is a wonderful advocate for agriculture and a man with a big future. His electorate is set to benefit big time from this free trade agreement that was concluded a couple of weeks ago. As a region strong in dairy, beef, lamb, wool, wine and horticulture, agriculture is worth $1.47 billion to the Western District. With the free trade agreement, the Western District will see that tariffs of up to 25 per cent for beef with will go, tariffs of up 23 per cent for sheep and lamb will go—

Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Will the minister assist the House by tabling the agreement to which he is referring?

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Wills will leave under 94(a). That is an abuse of standing orders.

The member for Wills then left the chamber.

Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The coalition is following the practice of the Labor Party and will table the text once it is fully completed and has been lawyered.

This agreement will remove tariffs on wine of up to 30 per cent for the Western District. It will remove tariffs on fruit and vegetables. Tariffs of up to 30 per cent will go. Wool will secure a new duty-free quota of 30,000 tonnes, to grow by five per cent every year. Of course, dairy is the really big winner. Tariffs of up to 20 per cent will go.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Freemantle on a point of order.

Melissa Parke (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Government members have been asking and answering questions all week about the China free trade agreement—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You are to speak to the standing order. What standing order are you referring to?

Melissa Parke (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Standing order 100(d)(i): 'Questions must not contain statements of fact unless they can be authenticated.'

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume her seat. Indeed, having sat down she too will leave under 94(a) sequentially.

The member for Fremantle then left the chamber.

Opposition members interjecting—

Firstly, I will say there has been a general warning. Secondly, I will say the number of times that the standing orders are abused by members of the opposition trying to make argumentative and debating points in a standing order—about the standing order they are trying to draw—is totally and utterly unacceptable. I suggest, Mr Manager of Opposition Business, you conduct a clinic for your members so that they can see how to do it properly.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On a point of order. You have just ejected a member of parliament for taking a point of order in which she precisely quoted the standing order it was referring to. How is that an abuse?

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Because that was not the abuse she was ejected for; it was the argument that she put into the question, which is totally against the way you raise a point of order.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the point of order: the member for Fremantle raised a point of order. You asked her to identify the standing order, which she proceeded to do. At that point you asked her to leave exactly at the time she named the standing order that she was referring to. I would ask you to clarify for the House, for the benefit of honourable members, what her offence was when she named the standing order which you were alleging was abused.

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Clearly, on the points of order that have been taken by the opposition, the Manager of Opposition Business in the House should explain to the member for Fremantle that the standing order under which she was quoting was about questions—not answers. Therefore it was totally out of order. And the fact that she had to read it indicates she was put up to in the first place. The opposition should stop trying to disrupt the parliament and trying to make life difficult for the government when they actually should be asking questions and eliciting answers.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Leader of the House for a quite useful intervention. And indeed the Manager of Opposition Business will also know that the only standing order that relates to the question in a way answers may be given is the one that relates to relevance. None of the other standing orders do, and speaker after speaker has pointed it out to the chamber. The minister has the call.

Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Clearly those opposite have no interest in seeing their constituents have explained to them opportunities for growth and jobs. The opportunities for dairy in Western District extend to infant formula, milk powders, liquid milk, ice cream, yoghurt and cheese and so much more. This free trade agreement is rich not just for the Western District but for the whole of Victoria. The agreement has the potential to deliver enormous benefits. These will only be achieved if the increase in the higher value production can be delivered to the Port of Melbourne cost effectively. In this regard, the construction of the east-west tunnel is fundamental to the seamless connection of the Tullamarine Freeway to the Port of Melbourne. Without the east-west tunnel, many of the competitive gains of a free trade agreement will be compromised or lost through higher freight charges.

Mr Thistlethwaite interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Kingsford Smith is warned.

Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Not only that, but the higher investment encouraged by the free trade agreement will be discouraged by the highly irresponsible actions of the state Labor leader, who has promised to tear up the contracts. He is a walking sovereign risk. So many of the benefits of the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement—

Mr Thistlethwaite interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Kingsford Smith will leave under 94(a).

The member for Kingsford Smith then left the chamber.

Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

are under threat in Victoria if Labor wins the state election this weekend.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister was quoting from the free trade agreement. I ask him to table a document that he was quoting from.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the matter that the minister was quoting from confidential? Can we have some silence.

Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The notes I was quoting were not the free trade agreement. The free trade agreement documentation is currently being translated into Chinese, as was the case with the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand contract that Labor was responsible for, which took six months before you tabled the text. Six months.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am not sure whether that was a question or whether you were really asking for tabling of documents.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was asking for the tabling of documents.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So it was not a question. In that case I call the member the Sydney.