Shanghai, People's Republic Of China
QUESTION: [Inaudible - Chinese]
PM: Thank you, just finishing the translation. Thank you very much for the question. I don't have many opportunities to address three separate issues you raised.
First in terms of foreign investment into Australia including investment from China: we are a capital hungry economy.
We need inward investment not just to develop our resources sector though investment is needed there including in very big infrastructure but in other parts of our economy where we see huge opportunities for the future.
To take an example in the food processing industry, we are a great agricultural nation and we seek to not only export our agricultural produce but to value add to it through food processing and to therefore value add to our reputation as a clean and reliable supply of food.
So, we are hungry for inward investment. We do have a foreign investment review board that takes a national interest oversight of foreign investment.
But to give you one statistics I think is very important. During the life of this Government, 380 investment proposals from Chinese companies have been accepted, only 6 of them had conditions put on them, and none, not one, has been rejected.
And so, in those circumstances, you can see that Australia is open for investment and welcoming productive investment into our country which benefits the investors but of course from the perspective of Australians creating jobs for Australian people.
Second, we do have a sophisticated system of environmental management that is not directed at foreign investors.
That is true for everyone in Australia, there is one rule and it's one rule for everyone.
So, if anybody in our companies wanted for example to create a new coal mine, there would be environmental approvals that they would have to seek.
We are trying to streamline that process as much as possible.
There is a state level of that process and sometimes at national level too but it's a process that applies to all it's there for a very important public policy objective which is that we do want to see development but we want to be environmentally sustainable as well.
And then, third, on the question of carbon and emissions trading, we have moved to introduce a price on carbon.
It started last July and it will become a full emission trading scheme on the first of July 2015.
China is of course engaged in this development too with an emission trading scheme expected to commence in Beijing soon, with the number of provinces engaged in pilot programs covering more than 200 million people and with an expectation of a whole of China system beyond 2015.
We are finding common approaches, market-based approaches, to addressing the challenges we both share of continuing to grow our economies but making sure as we grow them that we are reducing the carbon intensity of our economies, creating less carbon pollution and consequently less of a contribution to climate change.
This is one area where we think there are many things we can do together because we are both on this journey.
QUESTION: [Inaudible - Chinese]
PM: Thank you for your question and your statistics are basically right.
China is Australia's largest trading partner and we do want to keep strengthening that relationship both in trade, goods and services, and developing our investment relationships between our two countries which is of course a two-way investment relationship with Australia investing here in China as well as Chinese businesses looking for opportunities in Australia.
Our plans are to keep fostering the diversification of this relationship.
The announcement for tomorrow which I have foreshadowed of direct currency trading is an important aspect of that, our business communities' meeting and exploring patterns of growth as happened at the Bo'ao Forum that I've just been at, the continue negotiations of our free trade agreement.
We both have complex, diverse economies and so there are some sensitivities on both sides but discussions on a free trade agreement are continuing between our two countries.
And then, in terms of our own domestic policy settings, the Australia in the Asian Century White Paper is deliberately pitched at and calibrated to get asked and think about the diverse opportunities there are in our economy to engage with Asia.
So not just in resources but in food and food production, in legal services and in architectural services, in financial services and in public policy style services associated with social safety net and universal health care.
There are so many things that we can do together and we are deliberately as a government pursuing a set of domestic policies to facilitate the diversification of our economy in a way which means we can proceed ready to seize a full range of opportunities here in China and to have a genuine exchange.
Our economy working in a complementary way with your economy to the benefit of both.
QUESTION: [Inaudible - Chinese]
PM: Thank you for your question.
We are already deeply engaged with China working for peace and stability in our region and we intend to continue to do that and to keep growing those efforts.
We all have an interest in ensuring peace and stability in the region in which we live.
As is well known, Australia is a long term ally of the United States and we believe that the engagement with the United States in this region of the world, in the region of the world that we share, is a force for stability.
We also believe that China, rising in the way that it is now, China's growth and its participation in the regional and global dialogue is a force for good and for peace and stability in our region.
Inevitably in any set of discussions in a region, there will be times when issues have to be dealt with that cause some moments of tension and some issues to be worked through.
We believe that everybody has an interest in developing the institutions and the habits of trust and cooperation which enable any of those issues to be addressed and addressed peacefully.
That is why we believe things like the East Asia Summit a lead and level exchange once a year for the countries in our region where leaders can come and speak frankly about issues.
It's so important to developing those habits of trust and cooperation.
Right now, in terms of our region, many eyes are focusing on what's happening in the Korean Peninsula and the attitude of North Korea and the very provocative statement it has made which are raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula and across the region.
This is in no one's interest and it is clear to me from my discussions here in China that China does not want to see this kind of tension and prospect of conflict on the Korean Peninsula.
We all have a shared objective about stability and peace in our region and addressing this issue on the Korean Peninsula which is presented to us right now.
QUESTION: Congratulations for the wonderful speech which is quite promising not only for your country but also, I think, for the Asian countries like China.
As it is widely accepted that China and Australia has clearly and jointly created the economic prosperity for our two countries, my question is how does your Government feel the other relations.
For example, the cultural links and also the people to people exchanges between our countries and also does your Government is ready to take some actions to broaden the relations between our two countries in this regard?
Thank you very much.
PM: Thank you. Thank you very much.
We are working on a series of levels to strengthen the political and cultural links between our two countries.
One of the announcements we've made during this course of visit is we want to have an Australia Week in China.
We want to start that in the second half of next year.
It's something that we have done in other parts of the world, in the United States we have a program in Los Angeles and in New York which in our Australian language our own very unique version of English we refer to as G'day LA and G'day New York.
We want to make sure that there is an Australia Week in China where we get to showcase some of the opportunities for cultural exchange and people to people links.
I think this is so important because the more we can diversify those links the more we truly end up with a shared understanding.
If we can have Chinese tourists standing in Australia art galleries next to Australians looking at artistic works and the same happening the other way, Australian tourists coming to the great galleries in this nation and standing next to Chinese friends talking about Chinese arts.
Those people to people links, those cultural links then built and bonded which matter for the future.
So, that is why we are focussed on that program which we have announced.
In terms of other aspects of the relationship, we are working hard on the education links.
China is our biggest source of international students but we want to make sure this is a genuine two way exchange.
So, during the course of this visit, we've taken another step forward in a program we are calling Asia Bound which is about bringing young people from Australia to spend part of their time studying in our region of the world.
We anticipate around a thousand of them will come to China are the sort of things that build long term friendships and long term understandings between countries.
Then, at the political level, one of the things that I have been engaged in on this visit and in the lead up to the visit we are continuing to work on is the high level political management and strategic oversight of the relationship between our two countries.
And we will continue to work on that for the future.
I am travelling with the most senior delegation of Australian leaders, politicians to ever come to China.
So, that in itself is a statement about how seriously we take continuing to build on what is a good relationship but broadening it and deepening it, and making it more comprehensive for the future.