Wong Pops Shorten Thought Bubble

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has had his latest job destroying thought bubble popped by his Shadow Trade Minister Penny Wong.

Penny Wong has tried to resuscitate Bill Shorten's credibility as Labor backed away from their six day old plan of mandatory Australian steel for all Australian projects, a plan that would breach our trade agreements and overturn principles of value-for-money, non-discrimination and open competition.

Labor's so-called new plan is hardly a plan. Without the details, it is not a plan to save the steel workers of Australia and it is not a plan that would preserve the mutual benefits for Australian businesses and workers under our free trade agreements.

Shorten's old protectionist policies would see Australians lose their jobs in Aussie businesses that export to other governments and public services.

We have commitments on government procurement in six of our trade agreements, including our FTAs with the US, Japan and Korea.

These commitments ensure overseas procurement markets are open to international competition, creating opportunities for Australian businesses to bid for and win lucrative government procurement contracts in other countries.

For a man who wants to be Australia's Prime Minister, Bill Shorten displays a concerning lack of knowledge about Australia's trade obligations.