Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is very relevant and I have not got to the greenfields clause yet. I will build it all up so the good folk of Australia can actually understand what is going on here. I wish I had a couple of hours to do this. I chaired this committee where we had to make sure that the Foreign Investment Review Board were not blindly shutting their eyes and letting the Chinese come and buy all our farms. Certainly, if the Chinese government was buying up farming land, then I would have had concerns, but this was a real 'we've got to kill off anything foreign'. What really piqued us was when ADM wanted to buy GrainCorp. For all those out there who do not know, ADM is not Chinese; it is American. We have to protect our farmers—absolutely no problem—and our rural communities, the whole lot. But to use Daniel Meers' argument here in the Daily Telegraph about how the CFMEU's caps are made in China is ridiculous.

All through the committee hearings on the ownership of farming land—make sure it is not the Chinese taking over!—I never once thought that I would condemn any farmer, farmworker or farming family, or any food producing family or community if they happened to be driving a car made in China. Why would I do that? I never, ever went down that path. While that side opposite were going feral about the Chinese buying land, I was not thinking, 'I'd better get out there on every farm and make sure there are no tools made in China,' or no farming equipment made in China or any farming machinery made in China. At the same time I was listening to all that nonsense from those opposite, going on about the Chinese, I never thought, when a witness from the farming communities or from state farming organisations or whoever was putting up the big defence that we must stop the Chinese buying our land, 'Should I go out there and ask the farming communities and families where their fridges were made,' or their freezers or their TVs? Never, not once—it has nothing to do with it. We all enjoy products made in China, because they are cheaper. Unfortunately for Australian workers who may be employed in that area, Chinese items are cheaper and we buy them. It never occurred to me to think, 'Where was your furniture made, because if it has been made in China and the Chinese are buying our land, you should throw your furniture out,' let alone caring where the kids' school backpacks were made.

So Mr Daniel Meers is doing the bidding of the Libs over there, or whoever put him up to write this nonsense. Goodness me; the hats are made in China! Well, check your jocks and socks.

Senator Canavan interjecting—

If they have an Australian flag on them, mate, I will be the first one up here making an apology! In fact, don't check them. Check your tyre—leave it at that!

That brings me back to this legislation and the greenfields agreement. , Madam Acting Deputy President Lines, you and I come from the great state of Western Australia, where we went through this massive mining boom. We hear some commentators over the other side, who have no idea, saying, 'The boom's over.' Let me tell you: the boom is not over. Production in mining is going through the roof. They are not getting the dollars for the iron ore that they were before and they are not getting the dollars for the coal that they were before, but production is booming. Sadly, construction is dead. Construction is just about finished in WA, as you know, Madam Acting Deputy President. You and I had the privilege of going up there and seeing what was going on Barrow Island with Gorgon and Wheatstone. In a couple of years time, it will be kaput, finished—that's it. There are no other massive projects on the horizon.

I go back to the fibs being told about the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement. While those opposite are trying to break down organised labour, where unions have the ability to negotiate for and on behalf of workers who want to use their services—they are not forced into it; they want to use their services—they are killing off Australian jobs at the same time.

This is a copy of the text of the China free trade agreement and the memorandum of understanding. Senator Cash, Mr Robb and others on that side are saying one thing, and some luminaries who used to be members of the Labor Party in this joint—yeah, big deal!—who are doing the bidding of their clients and do not care about Australian jobs. If they are happy to go out there and take the Liberal-National side, that is fine. But I want to go to article 10 of the China free trade agreement, where 10.4, is entitled 'grant of temporary entry'. In Australia under the previous, Labor government we had things called EMAs, enterprise migration agreements, so that, if we had these massive mining projects, we had to try and find Australia workers first, and if that was not possible we would go for 457 visas and bring foreigners in from overseas who had skills. It was not a problem. No-one on this side has a problem with that. If you cannot find Aussies, to get the job done, import the skills. But what we should be doing is investing in the next generation so our kids have the skills. Don't worry about profits, don't worry about returns to shareholders, although that is important. Take this tiny little bit and invest it in the next generation so our kids and our grandkids have the opportunity to get the skills that we do not have, so when these projects come up Aussies can be employed. Great.

To those out there listening, I take you to 10.4(3) in the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement. It says:

In respect of the specific commitments on temporary entry in this Chapter, unless otherwise specified in Annex 10-A, neither Party shall—

and, going to part (b)—

(b) require labour market testing, economic needs testing or other procedures of similar effect as a condition for temporary entry.

I go to the memorandum of understanding, but I will not bore everyone with it too much—although it is not boring; it is damn interesting—because time is against me. Under the previous government, when we sorted out EMAs, you could only apply for jobs on projects, which we know are mining projects, that had a value of over $2 billion. I remember my good friend Senator Cameron I going absolutely off the reservation when we found out that someone was trying to apply that to Roy Hill. Now, you may not know Roy Hill; that is a big project in Western Australia. The one with the pearl necklace—what's her name?