Auchinvole Chris: New Zealand-China Free Trade Agreement Bill — In Committee 
Auchinvole Chris: New Zealand-China Free Trade Agreement Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:648;Page:17378] 
CHRIS AUCHINVOLE (National) 
: 
 This bill puts New Zealand first; that is what it sets out to do. I was dismayed to hear Mr Brown saying that he did not consider it to be a good bill that he thought all sorts of fish-hooks were being revealed and that it was basically a bad thing for us to be engaged in. I am sorry that some parties feel that way and I am dismayed that they see things in that way. I appreciate that their concern is genuine and sincere but in my view it is misplaced. The vulnerability that they perceive we have is without foundation but it is emotionally understandable. 
The reality is that New Zealand is already a pretty wide open market for goods from China but China has not been open to us. The great wall was secure in the form of tariffs but the free-trade agreement opens up that wall to our trades our businesses our entrepreneurs our enterprises and our marketing and selling skills—and New Zealand has those skills in considerable quantity. Speaking from experience I say that what exporters need is certainty in terms of the opportunities before them—not deal by deal and not one opportunity at a time but certainty in terms of country to country relationships. For decades our traders have been excelling in the work they do. What an opportunity they now have. As I said I am saddened by the lack of vision in the speech by Mr Brown. China is a very substantial producer and exporter of food and as has already been demonstrated in previous speeches the continuing economic improvement and well-being of the people of China will create an ever-increasing demand for our products. 
Another frequent concern expressed in relation to the free-trade agreement with China which I find ironic is that it could result in a single market taking all our products so we will become dependent on a single market. That is not actually how trade works. The popularity of our products and the demand for our products in China will result in increased demand from other markets. 
Let us reflect back. We used to be single market - oriented. We used to send all our products to dear mother England and that was the basic market. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: And Scotland! 
CHRIS AUCHINVOLE 
: I thank Dr Cullen. I well remember New Zealand products being consumed at our table but then the UK joined the Common Market. I remember being in Hokianga—and this point relates particularly to the opportunity for free trade—and having a discussion with a neighbour who said we were finished as a country. The reality was that this point was just the beginning of New Zealand embarking on open trade rather than being single market - oriented. 
As a country we have had a celebrated period of remarkable good fortune. This has not come about through Government policy but through good fortune in respect of overseas prices for our products. But we are now in a recession. How quickly things have changed in the last 6 months. We need our exporters to be more dynamic than ever. This bill will allow them that opportunity. We need the money we need to create wealth and this free-trade bill will enable us to increase our opportunities to do that. Thank you Madam Chairperson.