Clare’s crocodile tears

Labor's crocodile tears for a freetrade agreement (FTA) with India are laughable.

Despite their claims, Labor did notdeliver a single new FTA during their six years in Government; they onlyconcluded FTAs commenced by the Howard Government.

Since coming to Government in 2013,the Coalition has delivered FTAs with the North Asian powerhouses of China,Japan and Korea; delivered a new improved agreement with Singapore;re-commenced and fast-tracked trade negotiations with Indonesia; lead work toincrease ambition in the 16-member Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnershipnegotiations; and started and completed the preliminary study for an FTA withthe European Union, Australia's second-largest trading partner and largestsource of foreign investment.

The reason for Labor's inability todeliver FTAs is clear: Labor prefers our farmers, service providers andmanufacturers be left waiting at the bus stop of multilateral trade deals,while our competitors race ahead on the highway of bilateralism securing preferentialdeals to our detriment.

While the Shadow Trade Minister ispining for bilateral FTAs, the Shadow Treasurer is talking them down. It'sclear Labor's right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing.

The Government is focused on thequality of our trade agreements and the outcomes we can achieve for Australianexporters. If the Shadow Trade Ministerprefers speed over quality, Australians need to ask: what would Labor give awayjust to get a notch in their belt?

The Coalition Government will continueto negotiate trade agreements in Australia's interest.