2CC Breakfast

Subjects: leadership, trade relationship with Mexico, Colombia, Pauline Hanson.

Transcript, E&OE

22 February 2012

MARK PARTON: It's 13 to 9. The SMS is 13 13 19 and Brian has just sent us in an SMS regarding the Labor leadership. He says: "Hi Mark. Craig Emerson for Labor leader." That's from Brian. He's basically saying 'if Simon Crean's in the running, what about Emmo?' Dr Craig Emerson is the Federal Trade Minister; he joins us right now. What have you got to say in response to Brian's SMS, Craig?

CRAIG EMERSON: I missed the first part of it, I'm sorry Parto. I only just got switched over at the last second there. So what's Brian saying?

PARTON: Brian's basically saying 'what about Craig Emerson for Labor leader?'

EMERSON: Ah, well there you go. Well, Brian, I can advise you this: that I'm a full, total supporter of Julia Gillard as the Prime Minister of Australia and that won't change under any circumstance.

PARTON: And you're a happy little Vegemite as Federal Trade Minister?

EMERSON: I do enjoy the portfolio enormously, and we've been doing some good work. The Mexican Trade Minister was here yesterday, so a lot of good work going on on the policy front. But it is true, Mark, that it's difficult to communicate that good work, the benefits to working Australians in particular of our reforms, when we do have the media dominated by this issue.

PARTON: It is dominated by it and I'll actually be really disappointed if we're still talking about it this time next week, in terms of I'll be disappointed in the Prime Minister if there's just not a ballot called on Tuesday. If people don't have the numbers, if Kevin doesn't have the numbers — and it doesn't look as though he does — let's just have the vote and get on with it.

EMERSON: Well, certainly I would be disappointed if this destabilisation continues. The sense of it today is that it's all been in our imaginations, that it's a media fabrication. As I've said on your program, Mark, as candidly as I possibly can, it's not a media fabrication. There is a lot of exaggeration in the media, including from some supporters of a leadership change saying that there are large numbers who want that. The group is small — if anything it's getting smaller — and therefore the chatter should stop and the destabilisation should stop.

PARTON: Does it make you angry that in theory …

EMERSON: It sure does …

PARTON: … you guys are all wearing the same footy jumper; you're all heading in the same direction; and at this stage in the game nothing good can come out of this from a Party basis? Honestly, you must have private conversations with people and tell them to pull their heads in.

EMERSON: Nothing good can come out of it from a Party basis. Nothing good can come out of it from a national interest basis. The only beneficiaries of this, the only beneficiaries, are Tony Abbott and the Liberal Party.

PARTON: Suggestion was made on this program earlier that if somehow, I don't know, there was a ballot on Tuesday and Kevin got smashed and he got disheartened and threw his arms up in the air and said 'oh well, I don't want to do the backbench either. I'm out of here'. That wouldn't happen would it: bi-election in Queensland?

EMERSON: Again, I can't speak for Kevin nor can I foretell exactly what's going to happen in the future. The essential point is that it needs to stop. The destabilisation is not a figment of people's imagination. It's not a fabrication by the media. It's real and it needs to stop so that we can have discussions on this program and elsewhere, Mark, about this important Gonski review, about what we're doing in trade, what we're doing in terms of spreading the benefits of the mining boom through the mining tax.

PARTON: Well let's leave it behind then and … Mexico — what is at the basis of our trade relationship with Mexico, apart from Corona?

EMERSON: I had a couple of Coronas last night to celebrate the Mexican Trade Minister's visit — in fact, I had three. But, look, it's still largely natural resource-based, but we are seeking to diversify that relationship. It has been growing, and when we talk about the Asian Century we mean it, but then again parts of Latin America are growing strongly. I've got a personal friendship with Bruno Ferrari, their Trade Minister. They support us and we support them in the international negotiations to open up markets, so we're very like-minded. With countries like Mexico — as in other parts of our trading relationship — we want to diversify that relationship, including particularly into services. Their economy is about the same size as ours. There was even a discussion last night about whether we could sell really tasty watermelons to Mexico …

PARTON: Really?

EMERSON: Yeah, yeah. They sell their primary… premium watermelons to the United States, but they love our watermelons. So who knows? There might be a trans-Pacific partnership in watermelons.

PARTON: There'd be a certain amount of illegal trade coming from Mexico, would there not, Craig?

EMERSON: I don't know about that. You know, we're not supporters of illegal trade. In fact, if I can point out that we've signed an agreement called the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement. That may not be exactly what you're talking about, Parto, but we do want to crack down on anything illegal, including counterfeiting.

PARTON: I don't know exactly where all the illegal drugs from this country come from, but I'd love to know how much of it actually comes from Mexico.

EMERSON: Look, I'm not an authority on that. I think there are plenty of supplies through our own region, but I certainly couldn't give you any enlightenment on the source of drugs. They're a scourge in our community.

PARTON: Well, they are and you really do wonder with Mexico because it's been a fairly strong government over a period of time there in Mexico. You wonder how badly off they'd be doing if it wasn't.

EMERSON: Well, exactly. Their economic growth rates are very strong, their living standards are improving, and yet you still see this sort of trade. I'll give you another example in the region, Parto: Colombia. It'd only be a decade ago that everyone just said 'well, that's the cocaine capital of the world'. They've really cracked down on that under the leadership.

PARTON: Mate, they have. I was in Colombia last year and yeah I know it's very much a different place.

EMERSON: It's going gangbusters that place now. We're setting up an Austrade office there.

PARTON: Is that right?

EMERSON: Yeah, because again we think that the relationship with those really rapidly-growing countries that are opening up their markets is underdone. And that's an important role for me, to do that sort of work in trade and investment.

PARTON: Craig, are you a fan of Pauline Hanson's? And I ask because she's bouncing on to the radio for two afternoons here — today and tomorrow.

EMERSON: Oh, wonderful.

PARTON: She's co-hosting.

EMERSON: I think Pauline and I have approximately zero in common.

PARTON: Hang on — no, no, no. You now have something in common, because you're a regular on this program and she's going to be, well, she's on. And she's co-hosting.

EMERSON: There you go.

PARTON: There's something that you have in common. You can both …

EMERSON: You learn something every day. And we're both Queenslanders, so that's about where it … Unless she barracks for the mighty Bulldogs, which I doubt, which I doubt, then that's probably where our common interests end.

PARTON: Maybe you can both come to our Christmas party at the end of the year.

EMERSON: Well, Christmas is a time for great reconciliation, love and friendship — and joy.

PARTON: All right, Craig, thanks for your time this morning. Appreciate it.

EMERSON: Thanks Mark. Bye-bye, mate.

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