13 March 2009
Interview - Radio Australia Pacific Beat – Short Version
Subject: PACER Plus
COMPERE: In an interview with Radio Australia on the weekend Dr Grynberg accused Australia of pursuing its self-interest to the detriment of the Pacific and of allowing its officials to be so heavy-handed that Australia is losing authority in the region. Those are allegations Mr Crean rejects. He says he's met with officials from every Pacific Island country and talked with trade ministers from most.
SIMON CREAN: I say this categorically. Under my leadership in terms of these negotations there will be absolutely no bullying. And secondly, whilst we do need officials to conduct the technicalities they won't be determining the final outcome. That will be done at the political level.
This is why I've argued that these negotiations have to proceed on a two-track basis: one at the technical level, the other at the political level, the political will, identifying what the political problems are and trying to deal with them.
COMPERE: Mr Crean says that under the Rudd Labor Government negotiations for the PACER-Plus trade agreement are about much more than trade. He says Australia wants Pacer-Plus to be about building Pacific Island countries' capacity to trade, about building their people's skills and about aid and economic sustainability.
Ultimately he says Pacific leaders know when they enter negotiations that they have the ultimate insurance.
SIMON CREAN: They don't have to sign off on this unless they're happy with it.
COMPERE: But overall what I'm hearing from you is that you think that the Pacific Islands actually have a lot to gain from being involved in Pacer-Plus.
SIMON CREAN: I've got no doubt about that whatsoever and why do you think it is that people are queuing up to join the WTO, including a number of countries in the Pacific? Because there is the recognition that for economic development trade is vital.
COMPERE: Simon Crean. There have been allegations that Australia is undermining the Pacific's ability to develop its own independent negotiating position for PACER-Plus by refusing to fund the position of chief trade advisor.
SIMON CREAN: We have said that we are prepared to support and fund an office of trade advisor. It's up to the countries to either accept or propose alternatives.
We are prepared to be very flexible in terms of what resources are needed to help them build the capacity to actually undertake the negotiations.
COMPERE: Australia's Trade Minister, Simon Crean.
After years of lobbying by the Pacific the Rudd Government has introduced a seasonal labour scheme for Pacific Islanders. Mr Crean says he's happy for that scheme to be included in PACER-Plus negotiations and he wants to see it become a bigger region-wide scheme that would help countries like Papua New Guinea deal with labour demands for big projects like their liquid natural gas projects.
SIMON CREAN: For construction when that goes ahead it will require seven-and-a-half thousand people to build it. Where do you think they're going to get seven-and-a-half people from in PNG? And so if what we can do is to create an environment in which the - in which the workforce can be brought from within - can be mobile within the region, in the knowledge that we will assist in the training, through the training colleges, through our aid program, in developing the skills that are necessary, not only is there employment opportunities but you are equipping a workforce with a skill that they can use themselves within their own countries.
Now, I would have thought that that was a great example not of using a trade agreement to simply open markets but of getting a circumstance in which you're genuinely building the skill base and the workforce in a lasting sense for the [cuts out]
COMPERE: Mr Crean says he hopes that Pacific trade ministers will have a plan for moving forward with PACER-Plus ready for the region's leaders when they meet in August. With that in mind he hopes to organise an informal trade ministers' meeting next month.
[ENDS]
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