JOURNALIST: Senator Wong is in Adelaide, Senator, I guess Labors always said the devils in the detail on these trade pacts. Have you read the 1800 pages yet and what do you make of it?
PENNY WONG, LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION IN THE SENATE, SHADOW MINISTER FOR TRADE AND INVESTMENT: Its good to be with you, and, no, I have to confess I havent finished reading the 1800 pages. The test of any trade agreement is whether its in the national interest. And the key thing Labor will be looking at is the effect of this agreement on Australian jobs. Is this a good deal for Australian jobs? That will be the first question we ask as we work through the detail of this agreement.
JOURNALIST: Was there any reason to suspect at face value that it may not be?
WONG: As I said, well work through the detail. We welcome the fact that the Government has done what we asked it to do, which was to release the full text of the agreement prior to signing. I think that is an important thing because it does enable not just the parliament but the community to consider carefully an important agreement. Well assess it, as I said, against the national interest. The key issue is: is this a good deal for jobs here in Australia? And we will take it through the proper processes of the parliament with those tests in mind.
JOURNALIST: How much do you think events mightve overrun these negotiations here? One of the categories that Australia listed as sensitive was cars or motor vehicles. And so much has happened in Australia with the now announced closure of local car making. So has, in a sense, Korea benefited here from windfall and unforeseen developments domestically in Australia?
WONG: Well of course what has happened in recent times is the Abbott government has walked away from the car industry here. Thats true. They have abandoned the car industry here in Australia, and what that does do is place, I think, a greater emphasis on the importance, for this deal, of having market access improvement for auto components.
One of the big challenges weve now got to face as a result of this governments abandonment of the auto manufacturing sector is decisions we need to make to keep our components sector vibrant, to make sure we can keep that advanced manufacturing capacity here in Australia. And obviously export markets are key to that. So I think one of the things well be keen to look at is what additional benefits there are particularly to the auto components sector from this agreement.
JOURNALIST: Steel is also listed in the sensitive category and Korea has been known to be a very cheap producer and exporter of steel. Is that an industry that youll be particularly taking a close look at?
WONG: Well look at the whole of the agreement, and we want to make sure, as I said, its a good deal for jobs, its a good deal in terms of Australias national interest. Remember, the former Labor government did say very clearly this is the Asian Century. Were going to see a very large class of consumers increasing in our region and trade is one of the ways you hook into that growth. Well go through this carefully to assess whether the government has really maximised the position of Australia in the context of the growth in the region and the growth in South Korea.
JOURNALIST: This is just the first of several that are going to be concluded if the government gets its way this year. Others being Japan and quite possibly China. Is there any risk, in your mind, that we get too much too soon, and any failings of process in the negotiations might duplicate or triplicate as they go through other agreements?
WONG: I think the greatest risk is that the Abbott government will sacrifice the quality of the agreement for the political benefit of making an announcement about a trade agreement. I think thats the biggest risk. And I was very concerned when the Prime Minister was talking about the agreements that he wanted to get within a year, flagging that he wanted, for example, the China free trade agreement done within a year. I dont think its particularly good negotiating practice to tell people what your timeline is, because they immediately know theyve got some leverage.
JOURNALIST: And the size of that agreement would really dwarf Korea, wouldnt it? The China agreement is probably the biggest of all of them. What are the concerns that you have as this one is worked through?
WONG: Whether its China, Korea, or any trade agreement, weve got to have a high quality agreement thats in the national interest, that is beneficial for Australian jobs. Thats what weve got to look to. And we also have to remember, that we as a nation have always looked to try and improve the multi-lateral position on trade. We havent just wanted to do preferential deals. We wanted also to make sure those agreements can lead to more trade openness throughout the global economy, because thats in our economic interest.
JOURNALIST: And the governments working on that front too. So how much balance of effort do you think should go into those?
WONG: You need to make sure that each trade agreement you do can also contribute to a better multi-lateral outcome on trade. I think the greatest risk is that the Prime Minister has a bit of a viewer of trade agreements as if they were political trophies, and that corners will be cut and quality will be lost in an attempt to get an announcement. That wouldnt be a good thing. That wouldnt be a good thing for the country. And as always, what you have to look at is will these agreements deliver more Australian jobs? Thats certainly the approach Labor will be taking.
JOURNALIST: Well, Penny Wong, it looks like being a busy year for trade deals and I suppose for opposition spokespeople in this area. So thank you for that today.
WONG: Good to speak with you.
ENDS
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