Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party, Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There are two bills in this package. The first bill, the Customs Amendment (Australia-United Arab Emirates Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement Implementation) Bill 2025, amends the Customs Act 1901 to introduce new rules of origin to determine if goods imported from the UAE into Australia are eligible for preferential tariff treatment under the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between Australia and the United Arab Emirates. The amendments also give effect to the requirements for verifying claims for preferential tariff treatment of goods exported from Australia to the UAE.

The second bill, the Customs Tariff Amendment (Australia-United Arab Emirates Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement Implementation) Bill 2025, amends the Customs Tariff Act 1995 to give effect to the preferential tariff treatment applicable to goods covered by the CEPA between Australia and the UAE, signed on 6 November 2024, being for goods referred to as UAE originating goods. Specifically, the amendments in the bill will amend the Customs Tariff Act to provide for a 'free' rate of customs duty for UAE originating goods not listed in new schedule 16. The 'free' rate will have effect from entry into force of the agreement for Australia. The amendments also insert new schedule 16 to specify the phasing rates of customs duty for certain UAE originating goods that will incrementally reduce to 'free' by the fifth calendar year after the agreement enters into force for Australia and to maintain rates of customs duty imposed on certain alcohol, tobacco, fuel and petroleum products which are equivalent to the rates of excise duty payable on these goods when locally manufactured. Additionally, the amendments in the bill amend schedule 4 to maintain customs duty rates for certain UAE originating goods in accordance with the applicable concessional rates.

The Joint Standing Committee on Treaties supported this agreement. JSCOT received 45 formal written submissions from bodies such as the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the National Farmers' Federation, the Australian Industry Group and Australian Grape & Wine. Stakeholders from the agricultural industry, industrial exporters, and education and financial service providers welcomed the agreement and found it would enhance recognition of Australian degrees in the UAE and support the expansion of current operations in the UAE. Other stakeholders also expressed a desire for CEPA to further investment from the UAE into Australia.

This is a good week. We commend the government for closing out this agreement. We actually initiated the agreement when in government, back in March 2022. Just to remind the House, Deputy Speaker Chesters, as you would be well aware, I think one of the great unsung achievements of the coalition government between 2013 and 2022 was the work done by our trade ministers. In fact, what happened during that period was that goods and services covered by free trade agreements covered 25 per cent of goods and services exported in 2013 and went to 80 per cent by 2022 with the last two deals. I know the good member sitting next to me, as a staffer back in those days, worked on some of those deals and did some good work, so I thank and commend the now member for Flinders for her work previously in this building to help some of those deals happen. The last two deals, with the UK and India, were done just before we lost government in 2022.

To give you some examples—and I'd be happy for the member for Flinders to interject to tell me which ones she was involved with—we ratified the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, the world's largest free trade agreements signed with Korea—

Zoe McKenzie (Flinders, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tick.

Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party, Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

China?

Zoe McKenzie (Flinders, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tick.

Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party, Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Hong Kong?

Zoe McKenzie (Flinders, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

At the beginning.

Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party, Deputy Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And there were those with Peru and Indonesia, as well as the regional agreements across the Indo-Pacific, including the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations Plus and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

To segue a little bit, I think back to Federation, when there were two major parties. It wasn't, with all due respect, the Labor Party and it wasn't the forerunner of the Liberal Party. It wasn't even the forerunner of the Nationals or the Country Party. It was the free traders versus the protectionists. There was a fierce economic debate for many decades. But what has worn through the test of time is that there is bipartisan agreement in this chamber on the advantages and the benefits of trade for Australia, and we have led the way in that in a bipartisan fashion over many, many decades now. And what has it resulted in? It has resulted in the fact that now, in trade, exporting companies in Australia are literally driving our economic growth and economic prosperity. We exported around $650 billion worth of stuff last year. I'm a little bit biased. I'm a regional MP, and over two-thirds of that is from regional Australia. Coal, iron ore, gas and food—ag, if you like—are the four biggest exports of our country, all from regional Australia. I know my community get the benefits of free trade, as most of regional Australia does. Just as a personal aside, the biggest employer in my electorate is an abattoir which exports 70 per cent of what it processes. They employ over a thousand people and process both beef and pork.

Again, as I said, I'm happy to be bipartisan and commend the government here. I would make a couple of points. Part of this that would have happened if not for government policy would be live sheep exports. The ban the government is implementing is, I think, a shame, because certainly the UAE is a gateway into the Middle East for us for a lot of things. That's disappointing. But, again, I think the benefits this will open up—and it will open up the Middle East to us as the first agreement to be done in this region—are very positive, and I commend the government and I commend these two bills to the House.

Debate adjourned.