Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I said in my summing-up speech to the chamber that these are decisions that will not be taken lightly; these are serious decisions of government. But we recognise that, internationally, Australia's strength is greatest when we are speaking with one voice as governments across Australia. That's the purpose the bill serves. This bill will assist us in ensuring a consistent approach to Australia's international relations, in Australia's national interest, reflecting the Commonwealth government's fundamental role in setting those foreign policy and foreign relations parameters. It's our role to negotiate treaties. It's our role to represent our nation internationally. We do think that this remedies a gap, therefore, in the existing system. States and territories do not have to advise or even consult the Commonwealth in relation to such arrangements. That is a large gap in the system. It gives the Commonwealth no line of sight, no vision of what state and territory governments are entering into. We believe that the mechanisms set out in the legislation are about protecting our national interest and, importantly, addressing the consistency of our foreign policy across all levels of Australian government.