Nash Stuart: Tariff (Malaysia Free Trade Agreement) Amendment Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
Nash Stuart: Tariff (Malaysia Free Trade Agreement) Amendment Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
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STUART NASH (Labour) 
: 
 May I be the first member in this House to offer my congratulations to Julia Gillard the new Australian Prime Minister. I understand that she won the vote. [ 
Interruption 
] Sorry Kevin Rudd stood down and she put herself forward. I understand that she is also the first female Australian Prime Minister. 
Chris Hipkins 
: And the first ginga! 
STUART NASH 
: She will not be the last so congratulations to Julia Gillard. I must admit that I tend to agree with John Hayes in the sense that countries around the world must concentrate on their areas of competency. Having said that—and this is sort of true free-market policy; Michael Porter as we know came out about 20 years ago to New Zealand and suggested such—I also take on board Dr Kennedy Graham’s comments. I think my colleague Grant Robertson and maybe even Maryan Street mentioned this as well. We cannot put trade in front of absolutely everything else. There are areas of national interest or of great importance where it makes sense to have certain barriers in place to protect them. If we look at the national interest documents for any free-trade agreement there are areas that are protected because they are considered more important than a complete and open free-trade agreement. 
I do find it slightly rich that National is lecturing the House on economic policy because the Budget showed that its economic philosophy is outdated. It dates back to last century. I think this is probably the only Western democracy that is following the economic philosophy of the Regan and Thatcher years. I think National would find that the philosophies followed by the Americans the Brits the Canadians and certainly this Labour Party are based on much more updated and relevant economic policies that put money in the pockets of every New Zealander and are all about sustainable economic growth. 
Although as I said I tend to agree with John Hayes that this bill is by far the best for all New Zealanders there are risks involved. We acknowledge those risks; we understand those risks. However I am supporting this bill because I think that it is in our national interest. 
This free-trade agreement was signed in Kuala Lumpur on 26 October 2009. It provides New Zealand exporters service providers and investors with new market access opportunities and greater certainty and transparency in Malaysia. It builds significantly on the platform provided by the recently signed agreement establishing the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area. As has been noted Malaysia is New Zealand’s eighth-largest export market. Currently it is more important to New Zealand than for example Germany India or Canada. As has been mentioned in this House during this debate it reinforces the fact that our traditional trading markets of Europe have now been replaced by the more dynamic and closer Asian economic block. 
The commercial significance of the free-trade agreement is underlined by the robust and growing trade relationship between New Zealand and Malaysia. For an example between 2004 and 2008 New Zealand goods exported to Malaysia grew by over 80 percent—more than double the rate of New Zealand’s export growth to the world over the same period. In 2008 New Zealand’s exports were worth almost $1 billion which is not insignificant by any stretch of the imagination. New Zealand’s service exports to Malaysia have continued to grow in a range of sectors including private education which we talked about it. They provide the highest numbers of overseas PhD students to our universities information computer technology and engineering. 
At the same time New Zealand investment in Malaysia has grown albeit off a relatively low base by an annual rate of 77 percent since 2003 to almost half a billion dollars in 2008. It is a very important market but I will outline again my concern that I mentioned a couple of times—that is that this Government has not provided the companies that are in a position to take advantage of these free-trade agreements with the tools needed to do so. When I asked the Minister about this he gave some sort of smart answer saying that he is asking people to do more for less. I do not think that actually works. One cannot ask people to do significantly more for significantly less. In this House—and I am assuming this bill is going to be passed because the vast majority of us agree with it—in the last 24 hours we have passed a free-trade agreement with Hong Kong and with Malaysia. Recently we passed one with China. These markets are incredibly different from New Zealand. They have a different legal system a different culture a different way of doing business and different religions—in fact everything is different—yet 97 percent of our businesses are small to medium sized enterprises and simply cannot afford to employ an international marketer or an international market development manager. 
Mr Groser said he would like to invite me to the next meeting with New Zealand Trade and Enterprise and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Well I would like to go along to that. I would relay a story. There is a New Zealand exporter who is a very good friend of mine; I am very happy to provide the Minister with his name. He turned up at a pre-arranged time at a New Zealand Trade and Enterprise office for a meeting that had been arranged in New Zealand only to be told that he should go to the equivalent office of the nation that he was in. He turned up there a little bit annoyed—as one would if one has flown halfway across the world only to be told that one cannot be seen by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise—only to be told by those people that the reason New Zealand Trade and Enterprise did not want to see him was that that was the day of their Christmas party. How professional is that? We want to send a message out there that New Zealanders are professional we are competent we know what we are doing and we know how to do this. 
I saw a recent survey; I think it was presented by either the outgoing Minister of Trade or someone who came to the Labour economic caucus. We hear from a whole range of people; members would be surprised at the people who would like to talk to us because they are a little disillusioned with what is happening. The perceptions of New Zealand business people overseas are that we are unprofessional and we do not quite know what we are doing. We are a little bit lax and there is this old No. 8 wire mentality that all we have to do is turn up hand out a couple of All Black jerseys give out a couple of bottles of wine and maybe a pottle of manuka honey and the deal is done. Then we sit down and we get pissed with them. No longer is that good enough in the 21st century. No longer is that sufficient to get the deals done. In this day and age of globalisation we are competing with everyone. This free-trade agreement levels the playing field. Malaysia has free-trade agreements with Japan and ASEAN and it is negotiating a free-trade agreement with the United States etc. This is not the first as it is with China. We are not the first to get in there and make it happen; this is just levelling the playing field. 
We need to be incredibly professional and diligent in the way we handle our international business. Quite frankly having a New Zealand exporter turn up to a New Zealand Trade and Enterprise office only to be told that he cannot be seen because it is the office’s Christmas party just reinforces the stereotypes that a lot of overseas business people have of New Zealand and it has to change. It has to change if we are to take advantage of these free-trade agreements. That is why I have great concern that this Government has cut over $100 million from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise’s budget over 4 years—$100 million. That is not about doing more with less; it is about cutting services. It is about cutting essential services at a time when we are looking to develop markets into a whole new region. This is not about doing business with Australia or the UK where rugby jerseys and sport are part of the local vernacular; this is about getting there and proving that New Zealand businesses are the most professional and can do the deals. Cutting $100 million from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise is not the way to do that. I would love to come to one of these meetings I say to Mr Groser and I would love to relay that story. 
Hon Clayton Cosgrove 
: He won’t listen. 
STUART NASH 
: The member is dead right. I would love to see the response of New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. I said to my friend when he told me this story that he should not worry about Tim Groser. He is a very good trade negotiator but he has no weight around the Cabinet table which has been proven by how much money has been cut from his budget. My friend should take his story to the Prime Minister. John Key would be absolutely annoyed if he heard that that is the way that officials are dealing with New Zealand businesses. I tell members that if Phil Goff who has spent a considerable amount of time negotiating free-trade agreements on behalf of New Zealand heard a story like that he would be ropeable—absolutely ropeable—because that is not the way we treat New Zealand businessmen and businesswomen who are going overseas to take advantage of these free-trade agreements. It is hard enough as it is let alone with that sort of carry-on. 
I support this free-trade agreement. As I said I take on board Dr Kennedy Graham’s concerns but having read the national interest analysis having gone through the costs and the benefits and understanding where New Zealand has to position itself I have come to the conclusion that the benefits outweigh the costs of this free-trade agreement. I support it and I congratulate Mr Groser on getting the ball across the line so to speak. But also I very much acknowledge that Jim Sutton and Phil Goff did the vast majority of the grunt work for this free-trade agreement. Thank you very much.