Indonesia FTA ‘could be ratified pre-election’: David Littleproud

David Littleproud says the Indonesia free trade deal could be ratified if Labor was prepared to support it as it currently stands.

Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources, David Littleproud, at the ABARES Outlook conference in Canberra. Picture: Kym Smith

Agriculture Minister David Littleproud says the Indonesia free trade deal signed in Jakarta yesterday could be ratified by Australia’s parliament by the election if Labor was prepared to support it as it currently stands.

Mr Littleproud, speaking at an agriculture conference in Canberra, said “if there’s a will there’s a way” if Labor is prepared to support the enabling legislation that would ratify the agreement.

“There’s three sitting days for the House of Reps, I’m sure we could knock it off in the House of Reps if there’s bipartisan support and I’m sure the Senate if it’s non-controversial they’ll whack it through as well,” he said.

Labor’s new trade policy introduced last year bars the party from supporting new deals that include investment dispute clauses or ease the entry of foreign workers to Australia — and the Indonesia deal does include some of theses clauses.

Labor sources said that, if elected, the party was likely to seek renewed negotiations with Indonesia over the investment dispute­ clauses which may allow foreign companies to sue the Australian government.

Labor has yet to publicly articulate whether it would allow the enabling legislation for the Indonesia deal to pass without the excise of these investment clauses.

But they have declined to support the enabling legislation with the Peru free trade deal, delaying the ratification of the agreement, and have demanded the government approach Peru and get a side letter ruling out the investment clauses.

“Labor are already holding back Peru, there are the sort of tin foil hat approach that’s going to stifle Australian agriculture,” Mr Littleproud said.

Labor Trade Spokesman Jason Clare hit back, and accused Mr Littleproud of misunderstanding the parliamentary process around trade deals which make it impossible to pass in the number of sitting days left before the election.

Once the legislation which would ratify a trade deal is introduced to parliament, it is then usually referred to the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties which examines trade deals.

“This is an embarrassing blunder by a cabinet minister who should know better,” Mr Clare said.

“I’m disappointed David Littleproud understand how these things work, trade agreements go to the JSCOT to examine and they report to the parliament.”