Phnom Penh
PM: I'm joined by the Minister for Trade and Competitiveness, by Dr Emerson. We've just come from a meeting convened by President Obama on the Trans Pacific Partnership.
This is an important economic arrangement for our nation. It is a trade deal that would cover 30 per cent of the world's GDP. We have a high level of ambition for the Trans Pacific Partnership. We do want to see freer trade in goods and services in our region. As I've said consistently, Australia is a great trading nation and freer trade arrangements mean more jobs for Australians.
At the discussion this morning, it was agreed between the countries participating that we would aim for October next year as the deadline for negotiating the Trans Pacific Partnership; that is, by the time of the next APEC meeting.
We also had a discussion about the level of ambition of the agreement, and President Obama was very clear about the high level of ambition that is being sought in this agreement. So the Trans Pacific Partnership discussions today were very good, very constructive discussions.
I had the opportunity to have a bilateral discussion with the Prime Minister of Japan after arriving yesterday. Today I will be meeting with Premier Wen of China, and the Prime Minister of Thailand.
I've had the opportunity during the course of being here to have a number of informal discussions with fellow leaders. The East Asia Summit itself will then move into formal session a little bit later today.
In the course of the East Asia Summit, as I said yesterday, I will be highlighting a number of practical steps Australia is taking to support the work of the East Asia Summit and work within our region. In particular, I will be highlighting our efforts to fight malaria in our region.
Malaria is a disease which disproportionately affects the poor. In fact, in 2010 it was estimated 42,000 people in our region of the world died from malaria. And disturbingly we are seeing the emergence of drug-resistant strains of malaria.
So there is a lot to do to fight malaria in our region of the world. Senator Carr recently hosted in Australia an international conference on malaria and announced a $100 million program from Australia to fight this disease over the next four years.
Today I will be pleased to announce at the East Asia Summit that we will be providing $1 million to support the establishment of an Asia Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance, and I do believe that today the East Asia Summit will issue a declaration on malaria, which Australia has worked on hard, highlighting the importance of coordinated regional responses to this disease.
So I certainly hope that the mobilisation of this high level political effort will lead to a new attack on malaria in our region.
I'm also very pleased to be announcing today a $50 million Australia-Asia program to combat trafficking in persons. Trafficking in persons is a dreadful evil where people are forced into exploitative labour situations and tragically, young people in particular, are forced into prostitution.
The program I am announcing today will enable us to work with a number of our neighbours to reduce trafficking in people by strengthening criminal justice systems. If we can see better investigations and prosecutions of people who seek to traffic other human beings, then that will assist in combating people trafficking.
As I said yesterday the East Asia Summit is an important engagement for Australia. It brings together around the table the right people with a broad mandate to talk about political, economic and security issues, so I'm looking forward to those discussions today.
I will, with Dr Emerson, also be participating in the launch of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership later today. I'll get Dr Emerson to make some comments on the Trans Pacific Partnership and then we'll be happy to take questions.
MINISTER EMERSON: It was a great discussion in fact and the President of the United States was very enthusiastic and highly ambitious for the Trans Pacific Partnership.
As a second term President of the United States it is clear that he wants to get this deal done, and indeed, he wants it to be a high quality, truly liberalising agreement. The importance of that is that it creates more jobs, and better jobs, in the region and beyond.
We are still dealing with the aftermath of a global recession and the best way to create good jobs in the region and around the world is to open up our markets. Australia has demonstrated that over a period of 25 years, and we are very keen and very heartened by the President's indication that he wants a high quality agreement, that these things are worth fighting for, and the level of support that he gained from other members of the TPP who were here in Phnom Penh.
So I think it is a very encouraging outcome from that meeting. It is now over to the Trade Ministers to deliver, but the instructions couldn't have been clearer that the parties to the TPP who were here, particularly led by the President of the United States, are keen to get this deal done.
It would be good news for Australia. It's right up the alley of Australia in the Asian Century. This is what we've been on about; consistency. It's very much anticipated and covered in the white paper and we will give our very best efforts, our enthusiasm, our energy, to bring this to a successful conclusion.
PM: Okay, we'll take some questions.
JOURNALIST: When you say there's an October deadline, what specifically will be achieved by October this year?
PM: Well the ambition here is for the agreement to be reached by October.
JOURNALIST: Involving all the parties?
PM: Involving the 11 Trans Pacific Partnership nations. There are a number of nations, other nations, that are contemplating involving themselves in the Trans Pacific Partnership. Obviously they need to make their decisions through their own political and decision-making processes.
But what has been made clear all along is that if other nations seek to join then they can't take the process backwards. They need to come into the process where it is at that point.
JOURNALIST: Why is there a need for two trade agreements to be discussed? Is one more US-focused, the other more China-focused? What's the synergy between the two deals being done?
PM: Well our perspective - and I'll get Dr Emerson to comment as well - but our perspective is getting economic integration which benefits Australia in our region is a pretty hard thing to do. So any opportunity we've got to prosecute that agenda we will take.
The Trans Pacific Partnership was launched by President Obama some time back and there have already been rounds of discussions involving trade ministers and involving officials. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement is one that is ASEAN-lead, which is just at the starting point. But of course we have done a lot of good work with ASEAN nations on freer trade and getting economic integration in our region.
So from our perspective it makes sense to be involved in both and to be maximising our efforts in both. I'll turn to Dr Emerson for some comments.
MINISTER EMERSON: Thank you. I recall, as set out in the Asian Century White Paper, the goal of both the Trans Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership is to realise the vision of APEC for a free trade area for Asia and the Pacific.
We now look like we are going to have two pathways to the one destination: a free trade area of Asia and the Pacific. This is very heartening and if one set of negotiations lends momentum to the other set of negotiations that's all for the good, and that's entirely possible.
We'll see how the dynamics unfold but I imagine parties in both of the negotiations will be having an eye to how the other negotiations are going. The good news for Australia is that we're in both. In fact we'll be in every trade negotiation going because we have proven time and time again, as a free trading nation, that this is a pathway to more jobs and better jobs.
JOURNALIST: Concerns have been raised in Thailand about the TPP, specifically that it gives the US too much power over what are essentially still developing nations in Southeast Asia. Was that something that was discussed in the meeting this morning?
PM: No. It's a matter for Thailand to make a decision whether it wants to involve itself in the Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations.
But let's be clear here, this is an economic arrangement. This is a trade arrangement, this is about people plying their way and making their living and creating jobs.
And Dr Emerson is right to refer to the overarching plan for the country we have, through our Australia in the Asian Century White Paper. This is about jobs for us.
We've seen a down-payment in our economy from the growth in our region in resources. It's a down-payment because you are going to see huge growth in demand for food, demand for tourism, demand for high end services, demand for elaborately transformed manufactures.
Us being able to get those goods and services into the growing region of the world where we live without them subject to tariffs or quota restrictions is in our interests, and that's what we're aiming for.
JOURNALIST: At the gala dinner last night, do you think you had the best seat in the house?
PM: Well I had the opportunity to sit next to President Obama and next to my partner Tim. I had a wide-ranging discussion with President Obama.
I congratulated him on his election. I'd had the opportunity to do that by phone, but did it in person. He congratulated me on Australia being successfully voted onto the UN Security Council. We had the opportunity to talk about issues that are on the agenda for the East Asia Summit, as well as circumstances in the Middle East. So we had a wide ranging discussion so it was a good opportunity to catch up.
JOURALIST: Did the President give you any tips on how to beat the conservatives?
PM: We'll get about doing that in our own way.
JOURNALIST: What will you say to Premier Wen about the dispute in the South China Sea?
PM: Well Australia's position here is clear. First, it is clear that the view we take of the East Asia Summit is that it needs to be a meeting of leaders where you can bring any issue to the table. That any issue ought to be able to be brought to the table and be the subject of frank discussion.
On the South China Sea in particular, Australia's position is that we do not take sides on the territorial claims. We do not have a view about the territorial claims. But we do have a view that the South China Sea questions need to be worked through peacefully and in accordance with international law. And we are very supportive of the work of ASEAN and China to establish a code of conduct for the South China Sea.
Now this is important to Australia. One, because we think to realise the full promise of the East Asia Summit you need to be able to bring anything you want to the table. But number two, we are talking about an area of the world that our shipping needs to go through to take our goods to the world. This is a very heavily used trade route for Australia and consequently what happens there in terms of maritime security is important to us.
JOURNALIST: Back home there seems to be some reluctance on the part of some states to fully cooperate with your Royal Commission proposal. How well can that inquiry function if states decline to be fully involved?
PM: We will have a Royal Commission. As I made clear when I announced it, we will have a Royal Commission.
The Federal Government is absolutely committed to that and we are negotiating on terms of reference now and ways of working, and we wanted to do that in a broad and consultative way. States and territories involved, survivors groups involved, Churches and other institutions involved.
Now states will ultimately make their own decisions about how they chose to relate to the Royal Commission but from everything I've heard from my state colleagues and counterparts they are going to take a cooperative approach. The precise form of that approach is still the subject of discussion at the level of the Attorney General.
But there will be a Royal Commission that is effective to look at the key questions here which I outlined to the Australian people when I announced it. We want to look at institutional responses to child abuse and I do believe that the Royal Commission can play a role in helping with some healing, and we all want to see that.
JOURNALIST: You mentioned your partner Tim. We understand his son is with you. Some people asking questions back home about why he's here and who paid for him to be here, can you clear that up for us?
PM: Tim's son Kane is on a private visit to Cambodia, he's been here for some time. He's on his own private visit. Of course because Tim is here in Cambodia he is taking the opportunity to catch up with his son. But I do want to be clear about this; he is on a private visit. He did not travel with us. He was here in Cambodia. He is in accommodation that is his own accommodation.
JOURNALIST: Just on a domestic issue, the issue of euthanasia is coming up in Parliament and the Greens have a private members' bill. Will you be allowing a conscience vote for Labor MPs?
PM: Euthanasia issues are always a conscience vote for Labor MP's. It doesn't even require discussion. It is long time established, through earlier rounds of discussion of euthanasia in the Federal Parliament, that matters associated with euthanasia are a conscience vote issue.
JOURNALIST: Even a private members' bill?
PM: It doesn't matter the source of the bill, that's not where the issue comes from. It's a long established protocol within our political party that matters associated with euthanasia are conscience votes.
JOURNALIST: On GST, Rob Oakeshott's reported today saying that both parties have given him an assurance that there will be some sort of review after the election, of the GST. Is that factual?
PM: Look, I've been briefed on those reports. I don't know from what they arise from, I simply don't know. Let me be very clear about my position and the government's position on the GST.
We will not increase the rate or broaden the base of the GST. People would remember that Labor was opposed to the GST, we were opposed to it because it is a regressive tax. We accepted, following all of the arrangements that were made in our economy, to put the GST in place, that you couldn't unscramble that egg. But it is a regressive tax. Labor will not be increasing it, Labor will not be broadening the base of it.
JOURNALIST: Is it an issue that it seems to be that every time you go overseas Kevin Rudd pops up on national television?
PM: No it doesn't worry me at all.
JOURNALIST: Just on the South China Sea issue, Australia being a relatively neutral observer on this, how do you generally see Hu Jintao just two weeks ago just ignore China's continued ambitions to expand its military in the region and they're willingness to wage a local war. Do you think a code of conduct would help actually, China's ambitions in this regard?
PM: I'm not accepting part of the premise of your question, so not accepting the characterisation of President Hu's remarks. But let's be clear here about our perspective on the South China Sea. We don't take a position on the territorial claims but we believe it is in everybody's interest that issues in the South China Sea are managed in a peaceful way in accordance with international law. That's Australia's perspective.
And we do believe that a code of conduct would assist with making sure that any issues in the South China Sea, any conduct there, could be managed in accordance with the code. That is, that the rules and manner of responses would be predictable and knowable. That's Australia's position, it's been one of long-standing and its one we'll continue to argue for.
JOURNALIST: Just on Gaza and Israel, there have been more attacks overnight and we've seen the death toll rise. As an incoming member of the Security Council, what is Australia's position at the moment as to the direction of this conflict and what are you encouraging the parties to do?
PM: I spoke to Prime Minister Netanyahu on Friday night about the issues in the Middle East that we have seen. So I had the opportunity to have a conversation with him then.
I made the points very clearly to him then that we absolutely condemn as a Government the rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel - absolutely condemn those rocket attacks and they must cease.
Israel has the right to defend itself and I stated that to Prime Minister Netanyahu. Of course, we would want to see de-escalation of these current, very severe tensions between Israel and what is happening in Gaza. We would want to see a de-escalation and we would want people to act with restraint and we would want people to conduct themselves in a way which minimises the risk of civilian casualties.
JOURNALIST: What about the possibility of ground attacks?
PM: Since I've had that discussion with the Prime Minister of Israel, we've seen more activity and engagement and we do welcome the fact that the United States of America, Eygpt, the Un Secretary-General and others, are now active trying to manage these issues and trying to bring about a cease fire and deal with these tensions. That's Australia's position.
It is very concerning what we are seeing there. The rocket attacks are obviously absolutely condemned by us. The rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel and auspice by Hamas and others. But we do want to see this de-escalated in terms of tension and we are obviously hoping that the efforts of those now involved in trying to secure that de-escalation are successful.
Question: When you ask Premier Wen, will you urge him to have formal talks on a code of conduct?
PM: I will say to Premier Wen in the course of our discussions about the agenda for the East Asia Summit the same things that I have said to you here, and I'm getting a signal that I need to go and commence that discussion right now.
So thank you very much.