Australian PM highlights bilateral trade at Sydney Boao Conference

Australian Prime Minister Toby Abbott sought to re-assure the nation's trading partners that Sino- Australian Free Trade Agreement will stand amid continued domestic political fall out surrounding worker provisions.

"Free trade agreements are too important for our country, too important for our businesses and too important for our children to be sacrificed at the alter of short-term xenophobic politics," Abbott told the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) conference in Sydney on Thursday.

In recent weeks, Australia's trade union groups and political opposition parties have launched a public relations campaign, saying cheaper, ill-trained foreign workers will take the jobs of local Australians.

Abbott said he hopes his political opponents will end their fear campaign.

"The FTA's labor mobility provisions protect the integrity of our labor market while allowing businesses to get skilled workers here where labor shortages exist," Abbott said.

"Everyone in Australia will be employed under Australian wages and conditions and will have to meet Australian standards for qualifications.

"That's fair, that's reasonable, and that's what we've agreed to."

Abbott, in his keynote address to the BFA delegates on Thursday morning, said while the conference will cover many aspects of improving bilateral engagement, improvements on the Australian side is contingent on improving the Australian economy.

"And the heart of our economy, which is trade," Abbott said.

Abbott said the history of Australia's economic growth is based around trade.

"Australian's today are wealthier and our country is more prosperous and our country is more influential because we have grabbed the opportunities of trade."

Abbott said former Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke, one of the founders of the BFA, understood Australia's future prosperity rested on trade with China.

"Australia is now poised to realize the Hawke vision and complete the work begun by (former) Prime Minister John Howard a decade ago when the China-Australia FTA passes through our parliament in the next few months and enters into force," Abbott said.

"It is as vital to our long term prosperity as floating the dollar and deregulating banking was in the 1980s."

Australia has recently signed trade agreements with other Asian trading partners, particularly Japan and South Korea, where already Australian exports in agricultural products have increased, Abbott highlighted.

Jobs of the future will be found in the markets of the future, Abbott said.

"Our efforts to secure these FTAs are all about better markets, more trade and more jobs," Abbott said. Endi