Former Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, has been sent to Indonesia and has reportedly ‘saved’ negotiations for a ‘free trade agreement’ (FTA) with Indonesia. From The AFR:
Malcolm Turnbull has reset relations with Indonesia and expressed confidence the Free Trade Agreement will be signed next month after meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo…
Senior diplomatic sources said the President, who had a close personal relationship with Mr Turnbull and requested he personally travel to Jakarta, was “beside himself” at the ousting of Mr Turnbull.
One source said the President contemplated “walking away” from the FTA.
Remember, the Coalition admitted that an Indonesian FTA would further open the immigration floodgates by permitting a “few thousand” more Indonesians working rights:
Senator Birmingham… said the deal included provisions to grant more working holiday and working while studying visas to Indonesians.
“We want to make sure that at the professional services end there’s an effective free flow”…
Asked to put a figure on the additional numbers, Senator Birmingham said: “A few thousand”…
So, an Indonesian FTA means more temporary migrant rorting and more low cost labour for business, which will further undermine Australian wages and working conditions.
The Productivity Commission has frequently derided the efficiency losses associated with FTAs, claiming that Australia’s trade negotiations have been “characterised by a lack of transparent and robust analysis, a vacuum consequently filled at times by misleading claims”, and has called on the “final text of an agreement to be rigorously analysed before signing”.
Once again, the Coalition has sought another dodgy FTA for political rather than economic reasons, without rigorous assessment, and without due regard for longer-term consequences.
