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

China did not need to create this multilateral institution. China could have said, 'We are developing a bank and we are going to invest in ourselves,' but China made the decision to work in partnership with the rest of the world and to invite other nations—and not just Asian nations but nations from the rest of the world, such as the United Kingdom, France and others—into the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. That is a good thing.

Countries from the rest of the world have noted and supported this development. Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, France, Germany, New Zealand and the United Kingdom are joining this particular bank—as they should. We welcome their participation. But it would have been a whole lot better if this government had shown more leadership and had realised the opportunities available from joining the bank rather than dithering for months and missing the opportunity to invest in infrastructure in the Asian region.

We all know about the opportunities of living on the edge of the world's fastest growing region. We know about the burgeoning middle class in Asia. We know about the increased demand for protein and Australia's agricultural goods in particular. We know about the opportunities in services—financial services and others—being exported to Asia. We know we have the skills and the capacity in Australia to export so many more services. Australia's financial services are highly developed. The fourth largest pool of funds under management in the world is in Australia, but we do not manage the funds of Asia. Around five per cent of the funds under management in Australia come from overseas. We could be doing so much better. Australia could be a financial services hub. But it would take complete engagement with the Asian economy to be so. You do not reach that sort of engagement when you have a cabinet which cannot even decide to join an important multilateral institution such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. This government are so dysfunctional that they spent months arguing about whether to take up the golden opportunity to participate in a new multilateral institution.

This is not to say that the other institutions, such as the Asian Development Bank or the World Bank, are not worthy of continued engagement. They have different tasks at hand, as does the International Monetary Fund. They have different tasks to conduct. But the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank fills a gap. It fills a hole. It is right and proper that the fastest growing region in the world have its own institution devoted to infrastructure investment. It is right and proper that we, such an important economy in the Asia-Pacific region, be involved and a member.

So of course the Labor Party will give wholehearted support to this bill. We will give wholehearted support in the other house as well. But we will take the opportunity to point out that these are opportunities which were presented to Australia last year which the government was dragged kicking and screaming to embrace. We are not going to have the Treasurer boasting that he was the first person in the world to sign the articles of agreement. By virtue of the serendipity of the alphabet, the Treasurer was given the honour of being the first to sign. He has come to the dispatch box and said, 'Look at me: I was the first person in the world to sign!' But he was almost the last person in the world to sign up. He may have been given the honour of being the first person in the world to sign the articles, but he was the last person in the world to sign up to the bank. That is because he was hamstrung.

I am not critical of the Treasurer in this regard. Sometimes I am critical of the Treasurer, but I am not critical of the Treasurer in this regard, because he knew we should sign. He saw the opportunities. But he could not carry the day in the cabinet. He was nobbled by his Prime Minister. He was undermined by his foreign minister. He was not allowed to pursue and progress signing up to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. He was not able to deliver what he knew was in our national best interest.

We have heard a lot of flummery about how we need to have better conditions and better governance. That is just flummery and an excuse—a dishonest one, at that—for months of inaction. The government have not progressed changes to the governance. To suggest otherwise is just wrong. What they have done is buy time, and they have been shown to be lacking in leadership. They have allowed other countries with much less to do with Asia than us to join before us. The United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy all signed up before Australia. They all indicated their support before Australia.

When these institutions are being developed, the early days are very important. People who are members early are able to influence the development of the institution. Australia lost that opportunity. We lost that opportunity on the watch of the Treasurer. It was not his fault but the fault of his Prime Minister, the foreign minister and the rest of the cabinet, who showed a singular lack of leadership on this matter. So let us not have any lectures from members opposite in their remarks which will follow about Asia and China and the importance of the Chinese economic relationship, because they have completely mismanaged this matter. They missed the opportunity for us to join this bank as an early adopter. This government completely got it wrong.

We welcome the backflip. We welcome the fact that they have finally signed and have finally taken up the leadership shown by the Leader of the Opposition, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition and me on behalf of the Labor Party. They have finally got it is that this is a development which is good for Australia and good for Asia. We welcome the fact that they have finally understood the opportunities presented by this bank.

See this speech in context