The China-Australia Free Trade Agreement has been hailed by Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, as ‘history making’. The positives include cheaper prices for manufactured imports and the phasing out of tariffs on various exports. But one of the biggest concerns is this: Chinese investors in infrastructure projects valued at $150 million or more are allowed to bring Chinese workers into Australia without advertising jobs locally. The Eden Magnet asked people what they thought.
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Megan Pendlebury
Eden
I think the whole overseas investment thing is fine, but there needs to be controls in place, and we need to protect our environment and jobs.
Work standards and human rights need to be protected too, to make sure people aren’t exploited.
My biggest worry with this trade agreement is there is no transparency.
It needs to be totally transparent with real agreements, no pretend agreements, made with local communities.
Lyn Moloney
Upper Ferntree Gully
I think overseas investment is a bad thing, if it’s just open slather.
A certain amount is ok so long as it’s restricted.
Right now overseas investors are buying too much land.
And it should be a big ‘no’ regarding bringing in overseas labour.
It doesn’t matter how big the project is, they should be employing Australians only.
Paul Moloney
Upper Ferntree Gully
There are too many imported products in Australia these days.
Years ago we used to call it ‘Japanese junk’, these days it has just changed to ‘Chinese junk’.
We’re losing all our productivity in Australia, all our land and everything else, it’s all going offshore.
We’re going to become a very different country, we’re going to lose our country.
And then we’ll lose our identity.
Carol Olver
Pakenham
We’ve just visited Eden’s Whale Museum, and read a lot of history there, and we have to appreciate what our pioneers and our ancestors have done to get our country where it is today.
When you get overseas’ people coming in, dictating culture, then Australia won’t be Australia any longer.
We need to stop and think about what our ancestors built up for us since convict days.
If the Chinese come into Australia with a free-reign, will they eventually override our rules and revert back to whaling, for example?
Jack Geraghty
Wonboyn Lake
We definitely shouldn’t be selling our free-hold land, only leases.
And there shouldn’t be any allowances for foreign workers unless there are no Australians to do the job.
We can’t buy land overseas.
And if they keep buying our land then they could end up controlling our economy.
And those overseas countries will only grow food for themselves.
They’ve poisoned all their land and now they want to poison ours.
Luke Denham
Eden
The free trade agreement is bad.
They’re taking our markets away.
And we’re losing our Aussie jobs.
I reckon it’s going to be more a problem in regional areas because there are less jobs here to start with.
I can’t think of anything positive about overseas investment.
I don’t mind other cultures being here, but they shouldn’t be taking our jobs.
John Doyle
Sydney
The free-trade agreement is acceptable, but not perfect.
Overseas investment is generally a good thing, but it needs to be monitored and have strict conditions.
If a big multinational company comes in, I’d firstly like to see them pay local taxes, and comply with the same rules as Australian businesses.
We need permanent, locally-run businesses employing locals.
Eden needs to open another factory and employ 400 locals.
