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QUESTION:        Why do we need an Australian super brand?

SIMON CREAN:        To promote what we take for granted but the rest of the world does not know – that whatever Australia does, it performs with quality. We know it. But the rest of the world doesn't. We've got to market that message far more effectively overseas. Every time I go overseas on trade negotiations I'm struck by two things. One, the rest of the world - our ability to meet the needs of the rest of the world in so many ways.  And on the other hand, the unawareness, the lack of awareness on the part of overseas countries of that; the breadth of that diversity.
So actually promoting what we've already got, not trying to create something new but just promoting what we are – a sense that this is not just made in Australia but this is Australian, we're proud of it, it has a stamp of quality about it.  This is the brand that will badge that.

QUESTION:                How much of a difference do you think it'll make though?

SIMON CREAN:        That depends on the extent of the commercial take-up but this couldn't be a better time to launch. Australia is the envy of the world – the only developed country in the world to have dodged the recession; a country that is forecast to be one of the fastest growers amongst developing countries but positioned in a region of the world that is the fastest growing region in the world.

We've negotiated and are negotiating trade agreements that open up those markets. What we've got to do is to penetrate them. We know we're competitive enough. We know we're good enough to do it. What we have to do is to market ourselves better. That's what this gives people, the opportunity to brand themselves around.

QUESTION:        Minister, just in terms of better marketing, was Australia damaged by the last campaign?

SIMON CREAN:        No, I think this is much more than a tourism campaign and, indeed, tourism has been a strong generator of job and economic growth for this country, but this is far beyond tourism. We want this to be a place not that people only come to visit but a place that they can see as attractive to invest in, to build a business in; and also a nation that is recognised for its versatility and its diversity - that what we do in so many ways is a quality outcome.

QUESTION:                Do you think we've learnt some lessons from the last campaign?

SIMON CREAN:        There hasn't been a campaign like this. This is branding Australia Inc. This is a business brand much more than a tourist brand. This is about saying to Australians, in so many different walks of life, be proud of what you can do but just market yourself more effectively around the knowledge that because you're doing it, because you're doing it from an Australia base that is proud in terms of its quality and its diversity, that itself is going to be an important marketing edge for you.

QUESTION:                Why have we failed to do this so far?

SIMON CREAN:        Well, I think that people have talked about this for a long time, so better late than never. Remember, we've been out of office for a few years. It took us to get back in to really take up the challenge again.

QUESTION:                Do you think the slogan is catchy enough?

SIMON CREAN:        I think...the slogan has capacity to be what it says, unlimited. I think the icon that goes with it has the capacity to also be unlimited.  The fact that it's spreading out, it's challenging the rest of the world, it's seeking to penetrate the rest of the world but it's welcoming to the world. It's saying to people we are an inclusive nation, we are welcoming, we are tolerant, we want you to come to this country but we're not going to constrain you. And so I think the icon and the slogan really have a power punch. How people use them, and how business uses it, it’s up to them but we want them to actively embrace this and take themselves much more effectively to the rest of the world. We'll do the bit in terms of opening the markets, we want them to do their bit in the marketing brigade.

QUESTION:                What do they have to do to use that logo?

SIMON CREAN:        Talk to Austrade. As simple as that. Come to Austrade. This is a brand for Australia. We want it to be taken up by as many Australians who want to.

QUESTION:                Will there by a payment?

SIMON CREAN:        No, there won't be a payment. We will embrace and welcome all the partners that come.

QUESTION:                So what's your take on Tony Abbott's Budget reply in terms of trade?

SIMON CREAN:        He didn't say, he didn't mention trade. I sat there last night, I did, and you know, why didn't he mention trade? Because in the almost three years I've been in that Parliament I've not had one question on trade from the Opposition. What do they say about trade? They think it's all agriculture. We say it's much more and, more importantly, we have so much more to trade, that's why we've got Brand Australia.

But on the Budget, how do his numbers stack up? How is he going to produce a surplus quicker than we've put on the table? There's no numbers, it's all assertion and no substance.

QUESTION:        With the name you've chosen, are you at all concerned about the connection with                 News Unlimited?

SIMON CREAN:        No, not at all. I mean, I've heard all these conspiracy theories. I mean, it's not actually a complicated set of words but what we're talking about is more than just the slogan, it's the icon, it's the way in which it's embraced. The words that News Limited have registered are simply for its conference that it holds each year. That's something that happens in Australia. Our icon, our slogan, is all about going outside of Australia and promoting Australia to the rest of the world.

QUESTION:        Minister, also reports of an Australian working in Port Moresby being shot. Do we need         to rethink doing business over there?

SIMON CREAN:        I haven't seen those reports. That is of major concern. Let me get the detail. Papua New Guinea is hugely important to us in terms of its strategic location.  It also has unlimited potential in terms of its natural resources so we have worked,and will continue to work, closely with PNG.  I'll get some more information on this...

ENDS

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