Ben Morton (Tangney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Will the Prime Minister update the House on how recent visits from world leaders have strengthened Australia's relationship with Indonesia and Israel? How did these visits help deliver more opportunities for Australian businesses and enhance security for all Australians?

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question. Yes, in the last week we have had visits from the Prime Minister of Israel and the President of Indonesia, and they underlined our strong relations with both countries. At the moment, we see people in Australia and indeed elsewhere in the world wanting to go down into that dark alley, that dead end, of protectionism, which we know will cost jobs and opportunities for Australians.

I am proud to say that we were able in the discussions with President Widodo to secure a continued commitment to open markets and more access for Australian exporters in Indonesia, a commitment to conclude the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a free trade deal, by the end of this year and, in an immediate outcome, to reduce tariffs on the export of Australian sugar to Indonesia to the ASEAN standard of five per cent. This will create more opportunities, more markets, for Australian cane growers and of course access to great, high-quality Australian sugar for Indonesian industry.

In addition to that, we have reached agreement with the President of Indonesia to increase the weight, increase the length of export permits and increase the age range of Australian cattle to be able to be exported to Indonesia. Again, what that does is create more opportunities and more jobs for the cattle industry in Australia. It is, yet again, another step in the direction of more markets. We are such a great exporting nation. So many of Australians' jobs depend on exports. On our side, we are committed to more trade and more open markets. Those opposite may sing the siren song of protectionism; it is a dead-end. That is the way to poverty. We need open markets, more trade and more jobs. On the security side, we agreed with the President of Indonesia to the full resumption of defence cooperation. It is of vital importance, as we enhance our maritime cooperation and as we work together with Indonesia, to make the region safe and to fight against terrorism.

In terms of the visit from Prime Minister Netanyahu, we again focused on counterterrorism and we focused on our cooperation, on security and also on the enormous economic opportunities for more collaboration between Australia and Israel, especially in the field of innovation and technology. We have a long and strong history together between Australia and Israel and it is acquiring a massive innovative technological dimension, which we will exploit as we work together to create jobs and the opportunities of the 21st century.