Page 3421 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 23 September 2015
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It is important that we have these conduits into these large partners of Australia in trade, but it is beyond trade. The Chinese community here is very supportive of the agreement and very supportive of the free trade agreement because they can see the opportunities beyond the business. It is about cultural exchange. When you have a country with China’s cultural achievements and a city like Canberra—which is on the land of the Ngunnawal people with 10,000 to 20,000 years of occupation in this region and as much as 60,000 to 100,000 years of continuous occupation and culture in this country—you have two very old cultures. There are very different styles of art and culture and history and tradition, but there is a real willingness to make sure that beyond the trade and beyond the business we have the culture, we have the community and we have the opportunities to travel.
Then there is the path forward. It is about the education facilities, working together, educating our young and, indeed, even not so young Australians and Canberrans and not so young Chinese and Beijing residents, so we have an interchange of ideas and that interplay between two cities in a world that is growing rapidly and has enormous problems to be overcome. It is important we continue that path together and that collaboration between the universities of Beijing and the universities here, including Australia’s premier university, the Australian National University, our own University of Canberra and the work of Charles Sturt, the Australian Catholic University and the New South Wales college at ADFA. They are very important things that need to be fostered.
It is also about people meeting people, whether it be in tourism or other areas. I think what the Chief Minister said in his report is quite true: there is a high level of knowledge about capitals. Capitals and prestige are very important to communities. Beyond our wonderful Parliament House building on Capital Hill we have the collecting institutions. You need only look at the Asian-based collections in the National Gallery of Australia to understand the importance of our links with Asia and particularly with China. It goes beyond the trade. It is about a relationship. It is about people meeting people and individuals meeting individuals. That is why I urge members to support this motion today.
If, as the Chief Minister said, it has been a success and if, as the Chief Minister says, there are opportunities with the China free trade agreement, it is important we get the path forward right and that this Assembly today sends the signal that we understand the agreement has a great deal to do with the future of not just Canberra but Australia., It provides enormous opportunities for all Australian firms and firms based in Canberra. A lot of the Australian business community has pointed out it is very important to bring the free trade agreement into being as quickly as possible. Groups as diverse as the Minerals Council and the National Farmers Federation have said that. Any delay has been estimated as costing agricultural exports up to $300 million alone in 2016. That, of course, has knock-on effects in rural communities and other industries as well.
Some of the things it is believed will come out of the agreement are an increase in jobs, a productivity boost, lower import prices, and an enhancement of the prospect of increased two-way investments. We know we already have recent agreements with
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