Lundy right - Kemp wrong on FTA

Date: 28 July 2004

"Senator Rod Kemp accuses Senator Kate Lundy of getting her facts wrong on the Australia - United State Free Trade Agreement, but Senator Kemp is the one in need of an accuracy check," says Simon Whipp, Equity Director, Media Entertainment and Arts alliance.

"He says 'We can made decisions [about Australian culture] without the agreement of the Americans," said Whipp.

"What the AUSFTA says is that we can only introduce local content regulations in new media if we can prove to the Americans that Australians have insufficient access to Australian content, that any regulations we might want to introduce are the 'modest' and 'the minimum necessary' and only if the Americans then agree can the Australian Government act," explained Whipp.

"Australian performers think that is a very strange definition of Australia being able to make its own decisions," he said.

Minister Kemp says that Senator Lundy is wrong when she says the AUSFTA is ambiguous.

Yet, the Government's own Joint Standing Committee on Treaties that recently reported to the Parliament on the AUSFTA found that the "terminology regarding audio and/or video services is ambiguous".

What the Government is asking Australians to agree to restricts the ability of future governments to support Australian culture and promote Australian culture.

There is nothing ambiguous about that.

And there is nothing ambiguous about saying no to an agreement that trades away Australia's identity.

For further information

Contact:	Simon Whipp
Union:	MEAA
Phone:	02 9333 0999
Contact Mobile:	02 9333 0933
Email:	online@alliance.org.au
WWW:	http://www.alliance.org.au

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