Australia is the sixth country to ratify the agreement, meaning it can now enter into force on 30 December this year. We join Canada, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand and Singapore as part of the first group to ratify.
Our ratification means we are guaranteeing maximum benefits for our farmers and businesses, with the bonus of two tariff reductions within 3 days - one on 30 December and another on 1 January 2019.
The TPP-11 is one of the most comprehensive and ambitious trade agreements in Australia’s recent history. It will help support Australian businesses to grow and see annual benefits of up to $15.6 billion to our national economy by 2030.
Australian farmers and businesses will particularly benefit from new high-quality free trade agreements with Canada and Mexico, our first ever with these two of the world’s top 20 economies.
For example, the Agreement will provide new access to the Canadian market for our grains, sugar and beef exporters. It will open up the growing Mexican market for our pork, wheat, sugar, barley and horticulture producers.
Australian exporters of industrial products such as iron and steel, leather and paper products and medical equipment, who currently sell $19 billion worth of products to TPP-11 markets, will be able to grow their businesses without facing a tariff disadvantage.
The TPP-11 also improves our market access into Japan for our beef, wheat, barley and dairy exporters beyond the bilateral Japan-Australia Economic Partnership Agreement.
It’s hard to believe Labor would have walked away when the US walked out on the TPP rather than staying and getting the best possible deal for our farmers and businesses.
More concerning is that in recent weeks we’ve also seen Labor yield to union demanded policies on trade that will substantially weaken if not completely eliminate the capacity of any future Labor government to get better market access for our exporting farmers and businesses.
Our Government’s record speaks for itself and only we can be trusted to deliver agreements that open new markets for Australian exporters, create certainty for Australian businesses, strengthen our economy and create more jobs.
