Government Inquiries

Parliament of Australia
Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade
Inquiry into activating trade and investment between Australia and Pacific island countries
 
The Parliament of Australia's Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade (JSCFADT) has received a reference from the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment for an inquiry into activating trade and investment between Australia and Pacific island countries. The JSCFADT has adopted the inquiry and referred it to the Trade Sub-Committee to undertake.
 
The Sub-Committee wishes to bring the inquiry to your attention and to invite a submission from the Freight & Trade Alliance and the Australian Peak Shippers Association on the challenges of trade in the Pacific and possible solutions to any of these issues. Submissions addressing some, or all, of the terms of reference. Submissions are requested to be lodged by Tuesday 11 February 2020 but owing to the Christmas summer break some flexibility can be shown.
 
The parliamentary inquiry into activating trade and investment between Australia and Pacific island countries will seek to engage with Australian federal, state and territory governments, business groups, civil society organisations and universities both in Australia, New Zealand and across the Pacific, and also with a broad range of importers and exporters, tourism operators, and those services providers involved in education, mining, infrastructure, logistics, agriculture, health, finance, development projects and other providers.
 
The Committee will conduct the inquiry and report against the following terms of reference:
 
The Committee shall examine the conditions necessary to activate greater trade and investment with countries of the Pacific region to the benefit of Australia and our Pacific neighbours. The Committee shall have particular regard to:
 

• the nature of Australia's existing trade and investment relationships with Pacific island countries and the potential that is presented by the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations Plus (PACER Plus) for enhancing those relationships;
• the opportunities to strengthen trade, investment, aid for trade and employment links between Australia and Pacific island countries and how they can be captured;
• the barriers and impediments to trade and investment between Australia and Pacific island countries and how they can be mitigated;
• the role and effectiveness of support structures and networks, including government, business, sport, Pacific diaspora communities in Australia, and areas of civil society, and how they can assist with identifying and capturing trade and investment opportunities for Australia and Pacific island countries; and
• the views, norms and cultural practices relating to trade and investment in Australia and Pacific island countries and how differences can be accommodated.

1. Export Control Bill 2019
2. Export Control (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2019
3. Export Charges (Imposition – General) Amendment Bill 2019
4. Export Charges (Imposition – Excise) Amendment Bill 2019
5. Export Charges (Imposition – Customs) Amendment Bill 2019

 
The Export Control Bill 2019 (the Bill) will create a legislative framework to regulate goods exported from Australian territory. The Bill intends to consolidate and replace the existing legislative framework for agricultural exports, which will reduce the duplication which exists under the current framework and provide more contemporary, flexible and efficient legislation regulating future agricultural exports.
 
The Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions Bill makes consequential amendments and provides transitional provisions to support the commencement of the Bill. This will ensure that exports which occur during the transition to the new legislative framework are appropriately regulated and controlled, with continued access to international trading markets.
 
The remaining three bills make consequential amendments to legislation relating to export charges. These bills create an appropriate legal structure for the recovery of costs through the imposition of charges, as a cost recovery levy, rather than a cost recovery fee.
 
The committee invites you to make a submission addressing all or some of the issues identified in the Bill and the associated legislation. Please extend this invitation to any person or organisation that might also be interested in making a submission. The closing date for submissions to the inquiry is 10 January 2020.
 
The committee encourages lodgement of submissions in electronic form. Submissions can be lodged via the Online Submission System. Submissions can also be sent by email to rrat.sen@aph.gov.au or by post to:
 
 
Committee Secretary
Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee
PO Box 6100
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Australia
 
Please note that submissions become committee documents and, absent a committee decision to the contrary, are published online. Persons making submissions must not release them without the committee's prior approval. Submissions are covered by parliamentary privilege but their unauthorised release is not.
 
Please ensure that any submissions or attachments you wish to remain confidential are clearly marked as such. A covering letter, clearly outlining the specific reasons for requesting confidentiality, should also be attached to the submission. Please contact the Secretariat if you require further advice on any issues with regard to confidentiality.
 
For further information about the inquiry see the inquiry homepage or phone (02) 6277 3511.