Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

The passage of the Customs Tariff Amendment (Geelong Treaty Implementation) Bill 2025 will be supported by the coalition. The development of this bill represents practical and necessary follow-up action to the signing earlier this year of what is generally known as the Geelong treaty. It also has a much longer and more formal name, which is the Nuclear-Powered Submarine Partnership and Collaboration Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. But, whatever you prefer to call it, this arrangement represents a key element underpinning the trilateral AUKUS partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was signed in Geelong on 26 July 2025 by Australia's current defence minister, Richard Marles, and his UK counterpart, John Healey. In broad terms, this represents a shared commitment between our two nations to collaborate closely on the design, construction, operation, sustainment and regulation of nuclear powered submarines, the central capability under Pillar I of AUKUS.

To be more specific, the bill gives domestic legal effect to article XXI of the treaty. That article provides that neither nation will impose customs duties, excise or similar charges on certain goods imported or exported in connection with the treaty. In practical terms, it means that, when eligible goods are imported into Australia or exported to the United Kingdom for use under the Geelong treaty, they can be traded freely without the burden of additional customs and excise costs. This bill achieves that by inserting item 58A into schedule 4 of the Customs Tariff Act 1995, establishing a duty-free rate for qualifying goods used under the treaty; defining 'Geelong Treaty' within the Customs Tariff Act to provide legal clarity; and ensuring that the changes apply not only to future imports but also to any qualifying goods that have already been imported and are awaiting customs processing when the treaty enters into force.

While this bill is short and technical in nature, it therefore performs important functions. It will help to ensure that Australia is ready legally and administratively to meet the conditions necessary for the Geelong treaty to enter into force. Under article XXXIII, point A of the treaty, each party must complete various domestic processes before the treaty can commence. Passing this bill is part of that activity. It is in essence an enabling measure, modest in scope but important in effect. If implemented successfully, the changes to which it has given expression will facilitate some of the economic and industrial cooperation that will be needed to practically support AUKUS, not least by removing obstacles and lowering costs for companies and government agencies working to deliver this generation-defining capability.

The language of the bill is deliberately narrow, and that's a good thing. The new concessional arrangements will apply only to goods for use under the Geelong treaty. That means they cannot be exploited for unscrupulous importers and exporters seeking to trade in eligible goods or used as a backdoor for unrelated trade concessions. Instead, the scope of the qualifying goods is narrow, limited to defence related items approved under formal arrangements between our governments and their authorised contractors. This is a targeted and well-disciplined approach to implementing the treaty obligations, consistent with the spirit of the AUKUS framework. It is about fostering even closer cooperation between two longstanding allies on a vital agreement and not about flouting trade rules or creating any kind of new class of general trade preferences. Here at home, this legislation has also been endorsed by the majority findings of the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties, which examined the Geelong treaty in detail.

I should add that AUKUS is not simply about building, acquiring and deploying submarines. From the time that the former coalition government began the work and ultimately struck in 2021 the original AUKUS agreement with the other two key allies involved in this partnership, it has been about embedding Australia in a deep and enduring network of technological, industrial and strategic cooperation with our most trusted allies. Through AUKUS, the long-term vision is that it will also lead to pronounced growth in the workforce, supply chains and regulatory systems that will sustain our development of the new submarines. The Geelong treaty is one of the latest practical embodiments of that partnership, ensuring that our laws, our defence industries and our economic frameworks all align with the capabilities that we are building.

The coalition has been steadfast in its support for AUKUS from the very beginning. In government, we conceived it and negotiated it, and now, from the opposition benches, we continue to back it. If implemented successfully, AUKUS will spur a once-in-a-generation transformation of Australia's strategic posture. It will strengthen our deterrence, enhance our industrial capability and cement our place within one of the world's most advanced defence partnerships. This bill represents the latest step in making that possible. It ensures that all Australian laws align with our international commitments, that our defence industry can operate efficiently with trusted partners and that the broader AUKUS framework continues to move closer to reality.

This bill is not controversial. It imposes no new taxes, no new regulations and no new obligations on Australian businesses or households. It simply ensures that Australia can honour the important commitment it has made under the Geelong treaty. This is a treaty that advances our national interests, strengthens our alliance with the United Kingdom and more broadly with the United States and supports the delivery of a capability that will protect Australia for a number of decades to come. For each of these reasons, the coalition supports the Customs Tariff Amendment (Geelong Treaty Implementation) Bill 2025, and we commend the government for introducing it into the parliament.

Debate adjourned.

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