Mr Latham asked the Minister for Trade, upon notice, on 8 February 1999:

(1) What are Australia's obligations under its APEC individual action plan for (a) tariff and (b) non-tariff measures.

(2) What progress has been made in fulfilling the obligations.

(3) How does Australia's obligations and progress, measured by unweighted average tariff rates, compare to (a) Hong Kong, (b) New Zealand, (c) Singapore, (d) Taiwan and (e) the United States of America.

Mr Tim Fischer —The answer to the honourable member's question is as follows:

(1) Australia's APEC individual action plan does not impose any legally binding obligations on Australia. APEC is not a treaty-based organisation; it is a grouping of regional economies which share the common goal of free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific no later than the year 2020 (with the industrialised economies to achieve the goal no later than the year 2010). This goal has the force of a commitment by APEC Leaders which has been reaffirmed every year since 1995. Individual Action Plans record the steps that APEC economies have taken (and intend to take) to reach this goal of free and open trade and investment.

The specific commitments that Australia has made in relation to (a) tariffs and (b) non-tariff measures are recorded in Australia's 1998 APEC Individual Action Plan which I tabled in Parliament on 11 November 1998.

(2) Australia's progress in implementing its Individual Action Plan commitments on tariffs and non-tariff measures is set out below:

. tariffs on passenger motor vehicles and component parts have been reduced from 25 per cent in 1996 to 17.5 per cent in 1999. They will be further reduced to 15 per cent on 1 January 2000 and 10 per cent on 1 January 2005;

. tariffs on textile, clothing and footwear products have been reduced from between 5 and 37 per cent in 1996-97 to between 5 and 31 per cent in 1998-99. Further reductions will occur on 1 July 1999, 1 July 2000 and (subject to the passage of legislation by Parliament) 1 January 2005;

. the out-of-quota tariff on certain cheeses has been reduced from $1.366 per kilogram in 1996 to $1.257 per kilogram in 1999. The out-of-quota tariff will be further reduced to $1.22 per kilogram on 1 January 2000;

. Australia has removed tariffs on all but six of the products covered by the Information Technology Agreement. Tariffs on the remaining six products will be removed on 1 January 2000 in accordance with Australia's obligations under the Agreement;

. a review of nuisance tariffs has concluded and the Government is examining the outcomes of the review;

. export controls have been removed on woodchips and other unprocessed wood derived from native forests in regions where Regional Forest Agreements are in place (Tasmania and the East Gippsland and Central Highlands regions of Victoria);

. export controls have been removed on plantation-sourced material grown in Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory.

(3) Australia's obligations and progress, measured by unweighted average tariff rates, compared to Hong Kong, China, New Zealand, Singapore, Chinese Taipei and the United States of America is shown in the following table:

Sources:

1. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (note: figure only includes calculation of ad valorem tariffs—ie specific/mixed/compound tariffs are not included)

All other data taken from the Individual Action Plans of APEC Member Economies.