Australia must get at least the same level of agricultural access to China as New Zealand, according to Federal Trade Minister Simon Crean, if free trade agreement talks with China are to go ahead.
Mr Crean’s stance has been lauded by Australian horticulturalists, reported the Weekly Times Now.
“I’m not going to conclude a free trade agreement for the sake of it,” Mr Crean said in Melbourne this week.
“As difficult as agriculture is on their side, there is no way we will settle for less of an outcome on agriculture than they gave New Zealand.”
“If they are not prepared to embrace that, forget about it. We’ll go off and concentrate more of our effort on Korea and someone else.”
China is Australia’s second largest trading partner, and accounted for A$30bn in sales of goods and services last fiscal year.
John Corboy, a horticulturalist in northern Victoria, said he was “certainly pleased” with Mr Crean’s comments, reported the Weekly Times.
“We’ve been asking for this type of stance for a long time,” he said.
“It’s important we get commercial access and there is an equivalence in the two-way trade outcome, or there should be no deal.”
Horticulture Australia Council chief executive Kris Newton agreed, and said the Australian agricultural sector was positive about a trade deal with China.
“But we need at least a good a deal as they've given to others, or why are we bothering?”
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has been an advocate of closer political and economic ties with China, and has insisted regional free trade is critical to recovery from the global financial crisis.
