Rick Wilson (O'Connor, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Will the minister update the House on how the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement is delivering new export opportunities for Australian businesses and creating jobs for hardworking Australians. Is the minister aware of any risk to these growing opportunities?

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

I thank the member for O'Connor for his question. I know he is passionate about the fact that on 20 December it will be the first anniversary of the coalition's historic China-Australia Free Trade Agreement. This is an agreement which has seen Australian exports grow significantly. The growth of the export of mangoes, for example, has increased 165 per cent. China is now our biggest export destination when it comes to Australian wine. What is this actually all about? It is providing Australian businesses with preferential market access into the world's second-largest economy and our largest trading partner. That is great news because it is about creating Australian jobs.

Let us not forget that it was, of course, the Australian Labor Party and the CFMEU that we saw run a campaign against the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement. In fact, we saw the CFMEU run one of the most dishonest campaigns that we have seen in Australian public life. They pumped tens of millions of dollars into that dishonest campaign, in the same way that they pump tens of millions of dollars into the Australian Labor Party. This opposition that came from the CFMEU, and the walking on both sides of the street from the Leader of the Opposition, happened despite the fact that former Labor luminaries like Bob Hawke and Paul Keating called for the agreement to be passed. In fact, the former Labor Party President Warren Mundine said:

It's embarrassing watching Labor dance around why they oppose ChAFTA …

He also said:

Having lived under the shadow of racism my whole life, the bigoted anti-ChAFTA campaign makes me deeply angry.

That is the condemnation from the President of the Australian Labor Party.

But the fact is that it is not just our side of the House that is focused on trade deals. I can tell you all that the Leader of the Opposition does have some interest in trade. We are focused on trade that is good for Australian workers. The Leader of the Opposition is focused on trade that is good for him and good, in fact, for the trade union movement, at the expense of Australian workers, because this bloke has form. We know from, for example, Cleanevent, that he was happy to trade away the payments and the wages of Australian workers in order to boost the union movement.

As a further indication that the Leader of the Opposition is actually more focused on what he can do to boost the unions, he has also walked away from the heritage of the Australian Labor Party. In fact, this bloke is more Castro than he is Keating. That is a simple fact. A lot of them are looking confused because they are not sure whether that is a compliment or an insult. Let me assure you that it is not meant as a compliment. The simple fact is that the Australian Labor Party is a shadow of its former self. It will do a deal to benefit the unions over the top of Australian workers every day of every week. (Time expired)