"The announcement today of immediate additional tariffs on Australian businesses exporting to the United States is both disappointing and meritless. Unfortunately, a tariff regime now appears to be the new normal when dealing with the United States and signals a further blow for Australian aspirations for a free and open global trading system," said Innes Willox, Chief Executive of the national employer association, Australian Industry Group.
"The justification for the imposition of a 12.5 per cent tariff that Australia is not tough enough on forced labour ignores the reality that we already have one of the strongest legislative regimes in the world as the result of legislation introduced in 2018. The threat by the Federal Government to further penalise businesses in an attempt to mollify the American administration would only serve to increase compliance costs and reduce the incentives for them to seek to access global markets.
"Economies around the globe are understandably trying to address the scourge of forced labour, but without coordination on definitions or solutions, companies are left caught in the middle, navigating inconsistent and occasionally competing cross jurisdictional rules and reporting obligations.
"Australia has to date had one of the strongest Modern Slavery Acts that has assisted Australian companies to interrogate their supply chains. Today's assessment by the US demonstrates the risks they face in unilateral determinations of how best to address forced labour in global supply chains, and the ever-present need for World Trade Organisation coordination on these matters.
"Australian Industry Group will continue to support the Government's efforts to overturn these tariffs which run contrary to the intent and spirit of Australia's Free Trade Agreement with the United States, which has been in place since 2004," Mr Willox said.
