Transcript of Press Conference
Senator Kim Carr and the Hon Steve Bracks
Commonwealth Parliamentary Offices, Melbourne
Friday, 15 August 2008
KIM CARR: Thank you very much for coming. I want to start today by thanking Steve Bracks and the expert panel who've supported him for the hard work that they have done on this review. And with the input from a wide range of stakeholders, they've produced a very thoughtful and comprehensive report.
Now, I trust that all of you do know that I am an unapologetic supporter of the Australian car industry. It's an industry that has been transformed over the last two decades, and which continues to be subject to remarkable transformation. There have been enormous changes locally and globally since the industry was last reviewed in 2002. The Australian dollar has gone up, free trade agreements have been signed, more low cost producers have entered the market, fuel prices have risen, consumer preferences have shifted, and climate change now dominates our thinking.
The industry is in a state of flux internationally, as new technologies compete to meet the demand for low emissions and fuel efficient vehicles. This could be seen as a threat to the Australian industry, or it could be seen as an opportunity to carve out a new niche in the international production system and secure the export sales that are critical to keeping the local industry on a competitive scale.
Now, answering today's challenges and seizing tomorrow's opportunities will require new ideas and new policies. That's why we've been talking about the need for a new partnership between government and the sector to attract new investment and to secure the jobs, the innovation, the technical skills which are driven by this critical industry. Our focus has been on green vehicle technologies and green production processes. That means innovation. Now under the current settings, productivity growth and R and D expenditure have flattened out.
To let them trend up again, we need to rationalise, to get serious about innovation, and improve global markets and supply chains. Australia now has one of the most open car markets in the world. Steve's report proposes that we continue the process of global integration. It finds that to do so will require further adjustment support.
Steve will talk you through his ideas in more detail in a moment. The Government will respond to those ideas in due course. Now this is a high quality report and deserves thoughtful consideration and a quality response. Our aim will be to achieve the best possible social and economic outcomes, not just for today or tomorrow, but for the long term.
So, over to you, Steve.
STEVE BRACKS: Well, thank you very much to the Minister and thank you very much for coming as well today. I'm very pleased and privileged to have the opportunity to undertake a review on behalf of the minister and the Federal Government into Australia's automotive industry, one of the most important industries in this country.
We undertook extensive consultations over a six month period, some 130 submissions were received from industry stakeholders, from government, from interested members of the community, and we took all those submissions seriously and we held extensive discussions and debate around those. We also commissioned some advice from the Productivity Commission on some models that could operate in the future and we welcome that advice enormously.
I also consulted, as did the panel members, with leaders of other reviews - the Innovation review and the Textile, Clothing and Footwear review, as well as discussions with Professor Ross Garnaut in relation to his other review that was undertaken. Can I acknowledge from the outset the support that I had in leading the review of the automotive industry from the panel, an expert panel who provided enormous support. Tim Harcourt, Peter Upton, Dr Beth Webster and Nixon Apple, and I'm grateful for that support and I think we worked very cohesively as a team and very diligently in the work we undertook.
As I mention, this is an important industry to Australia. In terms of production values, this industry produces some $7.7 billion value to the Australian economy, quite considerable. It also produces some $4.7 billion in exports. It is in fact, in the top 10 exporters in the country, and of course, it's the largest non-resource export sector that we have in this country, greater than wool, wheat and wine. And of course, only second to some of the resource areas of the economy. It employs some 64,000 people.
It's a large investor in innovation and could I just illustrate that by mentioning one important fact, that the two largest private research and development centres in this country are in the automotive industry in Ford and General Motors Holden, the two largest private sector innovation sectors in this country. It has important spillovers as well, which occur from the automotive industry to other sectors. For example, we had submissions made to us by the truck assembly industry in this country, and the supply of those trucks to the mining sector and how important the common supply chain was for their industry in having a lower cost base in their final production by having an automotive industry in this country.
And there's many examples of that in the high tech engineering sectors as well. As the Minister mentioned, there's enormous challenges that the automotive industry has faced since the last review was undertaken. The exchange rate, the Australian dollar has appreciated in value considerably from the period in which the major producers sought investment for platforms in the future on a lower Australian dollar.
Worldwide competition has increased and changing consumer preference as a result of that. I think when I issued the initial discussion paper, I indicated that Australia had a speciality in large and medium rear wheel drive cars. And of course, that is the speciality that's been built up. The challenge is to adapt to new consumer preferences and there's great opportunities in that. I'm already seeing considerable advances, the commitment of Ford Australia for the Ford Focus, the four cylinder Ford Focus with export and domestic production; the hybrid Camry and of course, other impending changes.
The recommendations that I'm releasing today as part of the report into the automotive industry continues the transformation of the industry which was started in the 1980s under the Button plan, where tariffs at that time were some 57.5 per cent. And this is a continuation of that policy in the proposals that are outlined here. The report is predicated on achieving environmental and economic sustainability by 2020. Slightly later than was anticipated in the last review, which sought a date of 2015, because of change circumstance, it's believed another five years of transitional support is required and assistance required to achieve that long term sustainable case for the industry itself.
The key recommendations include replacing the existing production support scheme, the duty credit scheme, ACIS, the Automotive Competitive Investment Scheme, with a new global automotive transition scheme, which will place a greater value on research, design and innovation and a great value on production values, both domestic and export.
The recommendations also include the bringing forward of the green car fund and if successful in the first tranche, the doubling of that fund to $1 billion in support for the Government for a complementary either two, or four to one support from industry itself.
Coupled with the recommendation in the report to have transportation, road transport included in an emissions trading scheme, that will assist with a price on CO2, with incentives and support from the Government in bringing that forward to new production opportunities for green car technologies in Australia, both for domestic supply and also export. And that combination will be a powerful combination more broadly.
The recommendations also include reducing the passenger motor vehicle tariff from 10 per cent to five per cent by 2010. That will make the passenger motor vehicle tariff amongst the third lowest of any country that is an auto producer worldwide. And effectively, when you take into account free trade agreements, for example, with the United States of America and Thailand, it'll effectively mean an underlying tariff rate of somewhere between three to four per cent - almost nothing.
One of the most competitive, open automotive industries in the country will occur here as a result of those moves. To encourage it further, investment in export by recommending that the Government give priority to new free trade agreements and to give weight to new free trade agreements, particularly in the Gulf states, of which we have significant exports already occurring from Australia, to ASEAN and also to South Africa in addition to those that the government is already undertaking and to have some priority for those in the future.
To offer a Team Australia approach, a one Australia approach, to automotive export both for manufactured motor vehicles and also component parts. And to have a concerted effort across all governments and all sectors of the industry in that approach internationally and to utilise some key ambassadors who can assist in that - some automotive ambassadors - at a very senior level as well.
To seek to pursue some further harmonisation and in some cases reduction of state and Territory motor vehicle taxes. For example, on the home state of Victoria we know that sales tax has been eliminated and assisting in some of the car fleet being updated to new car sales, less CO2 emissions greater fuel efficiency, by upgrading the car fleet as well.
Supporting the restructure of the industry to have a better based case for a global supply chain, which is reliable and competitive internationally. And recognising that there will be restructuring in the industry in the future, particularly in the component parts industry, and seek to get greater scale and therefore greater reliability in the supply chain that operates in the country. And to achieve that, through some capacity and ability to assist with transmission of business issues and other matters which are deemed on a case-by-case basis to be appropriate.
To have a new automotive industry innovation council which will oversight and provide advice to the minister and the government more broadly, on some of these changes as well.
I am very grateful to the - as I mentioned - to the panel, but I'm also very grateful to the minister providing an effective secretariat for the work that's being undertaken. And could I thank many people in the secretariat who supported it, particularly Geoff Lewis who was taken offline to head the secretariat and to support the work that the panel undertook; to Steve Payne, the head of the manufacturing division; to Peter Clarke, to Mark Mussared, to Doug Williamson and Vern Lim, they all supported effectively the review itself and they're a very professional group of people.
These set of recommendations delivered to the Government today are designed to have a long-term sustainable base for the automotive industry in Australia; a sustainable case, both economically and environmentally; a competitive industry that can compete world wide, that goes for export, whilst of course having a competitive domestic market as well, and one which has a reliability in a supply chain in the future. And these transition arrangements are designed to that very end.
Minister, I'm very pleased to obviously say to you that we're very proud of the reports. We think the reports will make a difference in the automotive industry in the future, continues with the reforms and changes which it's undergone, and we believe we'll have a long-term sustainable cases for automotive in this country. Okay.
[Applause]
And obviously, open for questions and comments. Yes Mark?
QUESTION: As the Victorian Premier…
STEVE BRACKS: Yep.
QUESTION: [Inaudible question]
STEVE BRACKS: Mark, I said at the very start that I would have an open mind about the work undertaken in the review and that evidence submitted to the panel would judge the final outcome, and that is the case. As you know, the panel on the recommendation of the Government commissioned work from the Productivity Commission on models. They indicated that in those models that were submitted to the panel, in which we had discussions with the head of the Productivity Commission, Gary Banks, that there was a less distorting impact on the Australian economy of transitional grants, or traditional duty credits than there was in fact in maintaining a high tariff level.
We took that into account with sound and robust recommendations made to the panel itself and I think it will help in the base case for the industry. Could I put it this way: if you look at all the factors that have challenged the automotive industry, particularly over the last five to ten years, and you had to rate them, you'd had to say that tariff reduction was not one of the most weighty. Exchange rate issues, world wide competition, the open market that we have in Australia, weighed much more heavily.
Already with free trade agreements, the tariff had already been discounted. The tariff was always going to go to five per cent. There was a question of timing and we were persuaded - I was persuaded - by the weight of argument that having the existing timetable to 2010 would not disadvantage the industry and would assist in driving forward further productivity and competitive advantages to the industry whilst having additional support for transition in the process to seek for liability as well.
QUESTION: [Indistinct] a lot of the news we've seen in the last 12 months has been bad news, it's been [indistinct] and what makes you optimistic about…
STEVE BRACKS: There was a very telling submission from General Motors Holden in a teleconference that we had internationally where they discussed, I think, I had some panel members with me at the time, where they indicated that many countries had examined a review of the automotive industry. Some countries had decided that they didn't require or need an industry any more. Several years later they came back and said we don't now want one. Our conditions have changed. There has been changes in exchange rate issues. We want to have the spill over effects that the automotive industry gives, with high-tech engineering and design capability. We want to broaden our economy and it's too late.
The reality is we have an automotive industry. The auto industry has survived here, enormous challenges whilst it has been opened to greater competition. It therefore has a greater chance of success because embedded in the auto industry are those competition changes and those productivity improvements.
Now, whilst there is significant pressure, particularly in Detroit, currently, there are signs that the auto industry is changing. And if you look at what's already happened in Australia, of course, with the decision of Ford to move from - to move into four-cylinder cars, and a Ford Focus, and to have the major operation for Ford Focus here, partly in export, partly in domestic.
You look at the move to the hybrid, the alternative power trains. You look at the companies responding to the market conditions for fuel efficiency and reduced CO2 emissions. I think there is a strong and robust case. But in that strong and robust case, there's always a transition, and what I'm recommending here is that transition will need to go for a further five years to get to that greater competitive arrangement in the future.
So yes, I am confident. There is no guarantees. But I'm more confident than when I started the review.
QUESTION: You mentioned Ford. Is there anything the government can do to encourage multinational companies to have a commitment in Australia? Because Ford, I think, [indistinct] even bigger investment [indistinct] in South Africa and arguably, Australia lost out on that target. And I just wonder, is that - are we just [indistinct] elsewhere, or is there something more we can do about that?
STEVE BRACKS: Well this review, and the recommendations of this review, is predicated on having a strong case that the government can mount to the industry for retaining our presence for multinational companies, and for support in the supply chain for those companies as well. So I believe the recommendations are designed for that very task which you made reference to, and I think it will help, number one, that the Government was sensible enough to say they wanted a plan to give security and certainty to the industry in investing in the future.
Now that was - that's a very positive move. All the discussions I had internationally with the automotive industry said that what they were seeking for Government is a defined, secure and stable plan for the future. So there's a platform for them to invest in. That is what the Government sought - we'd provide the best advice on how that could be achieved. And now, therefore, given that that was their major demand, the industry therefore, would be expected to respond to make some longer term commitments to the auto industry in this country.
QUESTION: [Indistinct] what are the prospects that the Government's going to [indistinct] automotive industry assistance?
KIM CARR: Well clearly the Prime Minister has indicated that - in a ministerial statement on World Environment Day that Australia wants a strong innovative and competitive automotive industry. If you consider what's happening around the world, and you can see countries - there's about 15 countries in the world that can do what we can do - the Australian Government has taken the view that we want to be part of that. We want to keep an industry here, because once you lose the capacity, you never get it back. So it's our intention that there is a role, a very strong role for the industry in this country, and that we can have a strong partnership with the industry to further transform, and reinvent the industry, and that we can engage in an international context.
And I've seen that first hand in terms of my discussions with the global CEOs of the major manufacturers here. But we can also diversify the industry and transform the industry in terms of the supplier base, so all of those things considered lead me to be optimistic that this report will be taken very seriously.
I can't tell you what the response of Government will be to each and every recommendation. But we will be looking at this thoroughly, carefully, and I'm confident that there will be an effective response shortly.
QUESTION: I believe the Productivity Commissioner's report calculates that taxpayer money to support this industry comes out at something like $300,000 per job. Is that level too high for this industry when other industries are doing [indistinct]?
BRACKS: Yeah. I think when you take into account the direct costs per job, it is a much less figure than that of course. That's number one. Number two, the reality is these are transitional arrangements; these are not long-term arrangements. But some interventions which will assist in a vibrant industry becoming sustainable long term. And that is, the - that the pretext on which the recommendations are determined.
We did take into account, significantly, Productivity Commission recommendations. I found them enormously valuable, and the panel did. And if you look carefully at the recommendations, you see that largely, they have been adopted. I think their report was telling. It was commissioned. The Government sought in the terms of reference for the panel to commission that.
We did receive it. And we took account of it.
QUESTION: [Inaudible question]
STEVE BRACKS: Look, I must admit I was overseas in Dili. Could I plead ignorance in not seeing the innovation statement. Not like me, really, to miss something like that. But I'm sure it was a great statement. And I'm sure it took account of the complexity of the Victorian economy which has to include automotive as well. But I'm very confident that's understood well in Victorian terms.
QUESTION: [Inaudible question]
KIM CARR: Well, I'm not pre-empting the report. But what this report has advised the Government is that we should stick with the current schedule reductions. That is clearly in the context of the recommendations. This is a new approach, in terms of the overall scheme that's being proposed. And I've got no doubt that those questions will be considered appropriately in the context of the report itself.
QUESTION: [Inaudible question]
STEVE BRACKS: It didn't have a material benefit, a material impact on any of the recommendations that we undertook. This was about the car industry, or parts of it, assembly, component parts industry, the after-car market. We looked at that comprehensively. And in looking at that did not have an impact on our work at all.
QUESTION: Are you envisaging there will be more failures in the supply chain, though? You're talking about restructuring. There's a lot of pressure on [indistinct] to…
STEVE BRACKS: Look, Mark asked a very good question about the supply chain, and whether there's - there has been, of course, some rationalisations of industry already. And of course, there will be further rationalisation of industry. That is the nature of it. That does not mean the industry cannot grow. That is the component parts industry. In fact, embedded in the recommendations are proposals that the component parts sector not only provide component parts for the three Australian producers, but they also seek to export, as some already do. We know some already do export. That increases their volume, reduces their cost base to Australian producers as a result of that. And there's some incentives built in for the component parts sector to get larger, to seek to have greater volume, and to seek to have export as well, in the whole supply chain.
So whilst there might be rationalisation, there's also a strong case and a strong possibility that some component parts sectors could get larger as well. And that's just a natural move as part of a mature industry which is more competitive world wide. This is all about having a base case in Australia for a greater global competitive industry in the future. But what is built in the recommendations is assistance in the important supply chain issues which are crucial for delivery of assembled motor vehicles in this country, and to ensure that there is some more discretion given to the department and the government and the minister on a case by case basis to look at some of those transitional business issues, which Mark would know, and many people in this room would know, you know, at the moment, it's largely a reactive situation.
Something happens, and you react.
This report is designed to be more predictive, to be more directive, and to ensure that there is a strong supply industry in the future.
KIM CARR: Can I add something to that. Steve's report draws our attention to the fact of the 200 major component manufacturers, maybe as many as a third are in a distressed state. This is a pattern that I have observed in a number of countries - in the US in particular, this parallel situation.
In recent times, these questions of the capacity of the supply chain to actually meet the demands of an advanced manufacturing sector have placed the industry very much at risk. And what we've seen in recent occasions is, ACL Bearings in Tasmania is an example where new models, production and introduction to the market of Ford have been seriously put at risk because of the failure in terms of management often of these supply chain, these component manufacturers.
So I particularly am very interested in what Steve's report says about those issues, this is not just a question of tariffs, I mean I've always said that tariffs are very much a second order issue, these fundamental questions about management, about being able to diversify in terms of export markets, about ensuring that the Australian supplier base is locked in, not just to our three major manufacturers here, but into the German automotive industry, and the Chinese, and the American, and the proposition that's put to us in terms of the Team Australia approach, is extremely important, that we have an ambassadors' program as well, that we have people in Detroit, and in these major centres around the world, the ensure that the voice of Australian industry is heard.
We got a highly innovative component sector, some major new technologies are coming on stream, which will improve fuel efficiency to an extraordinary level, in fact we're seeking, as part of this process, to actually have new technologies introduced to the Australian market by 2010, where we can have up to 25 per cent fuel savings for Australian-produced cars. But to get the economies of scale, we need to ensure that our suppliers are tapping into the international supply chains.
QUESTION: Minister, why has it taken two and a half weeks to release this report?
KIM CARR: Well, we received the draft report on the 22nd, and we received the final report at the due date, the printed report. Basically the process has been delayed as a result of just logistical questions about people being available, given the international events that are on at the moment.
Look, I'm in no mood to hide this report, I want to sing this report from the rooftops, this is an opportunity here, this is an enormous opportunity here, to actually revitalise an incredibly important industry. I take the view that this is an industry that has really good chances of success, if the right decisions are made. And that involves decisions, particularly by companies, for small and large firms, by workers and their organisations, through the unions, and by Government. And we want to ensure that a new partnership's developed so we can take the maximum benefit of these new opportunities.
QUESTION: Can I just ask Steve Bracks [inaudible], delaying that cut in tariffs?
KIM CARR: Yes, sure.
STEVE BRACKS: Well, obviously, as I mentioned, I [inaudible] Nick, from the start on what evidence there was in relation to the tariff, which would be a best case for the Australian auto sector. We weighed up all the factors, and if you looked at the modelling we asked the Productivity Commission to do, there was modelling in everything from existing remaining as a 10 per cent tariff to a five per cent tariff, to a zero tariff. And we asked for modelling on all those base cases, and of course we looked at the evidence on that.
Look, I think this will put us in a great position really, to argue, for example, for further Free Trade Agreements, which will advantage our export market. Now I'd encourage you, some of you, I know, Ian Jones and others, have been to the Middle East, go to the Middle East and see how many Australian cars are driven. See what the potential is to expand it even further. The world markets are there available to us, we've got a great industry, but we can make it even better by supporting it in this stage until 2020, until it becomes even more competitive, and that's what it's all about, really.
And I think the five per cent tariff reduction would not have any impact on that, in fact it'll have a significant upside, in arguing to the rest of the world that we're an open competitive market, and available to export our manufactured - house manufactured products, as widely as we can.
QUESTION: [Inaudible]
KIM CARR: Look, I've indicated, and I've said this all along, that tariffs are a second order issue. Now I know there's been a certain element of the media that has sought to pre-empt this report, and have constantly referred to informed sources that say, this is my view, or this is Steve Bracks's view, and they've reported this ad nausea.
Now, we've now got a report that actually sets out the facts, as distinct from the prejudice, and I would welcome further discussion on these questions after people have actually had a look at this package. There is an opportunity here, the Government will consider it very carefully, and in my judgement the whole issue of tariffs is just so much second order business, compared to the whole breadth of what's required.
This review was never just a tariff review. The assumptions that people made that this was just about tariffs, were wrong, and they were repeatedly told that they were wrong. But in some peoples' mind, industry policy is only about tariffs, they are wrong, it's an incredibly old-fashioned idea. We're about trying to encourage Australian manufacturing, economic development, in terms of our capacity to participate on a global stage, about attracting new investment, not trying to stop imports. We don't want to think about these in old-fashioned terms, as some people in Canberra seem to be determined to do. We're about the 21st century, not the 1970s.
QUESTION: Minister, in response to this report, [inaudible].
KIM CARR: It's my expectation that we'll respond quickly, this has to go through due processes of the Government, and it's not related to the Cutler Report. Yes?
QUESTION: Is it recommended that road transport be included in the carbon… do you have a view as to whether it should be done with an Emissions Trading Scheme, or a direct tax on cars, according to how dirty they are?
STEVE BRACKS: The recommendation in the report is that road transport be part of a market-based Emissions Trading Scheme, or Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, they're not being exempted from it. There's a lot of views about this, should the automotive industry be exempt, as it is in some other countries, or not, and our view is that road transportation should not be exempt, because it sends a better sign to the market, on the true price of carbon, and therefore consumer preferences which result from that, and changes in technology and design, as a result of that.
And it's a most effective, efficient way of operating, rather than operating with extra standards, over and above the stringent standards that are applied across the auto industry internationally. So rather than taking that course in an ad hoc way, having a transparent, up front price put on carbon, and therefore assisting in new green car production as a result of that. And already it's had an impact, the fact that the producers are thinking of different models as a result of fuel costs and CO2 emissions. And preferences change, that's a good response, that's a market working, you know, I support the market.
OK, we'd better…
QUESTION: …not discourage imports, free and open markets, and yet the car companies [inaudible]. How do you respond to that, and why didn't you continue [inaudible].
STEVE BRACKS: It's worth looking at some of the report's background papers in some detail, in particular to look at how some of the tariff barriers, and some of the taxation issues are affecting the competitiveness of the auto industry in other countries. We stand as one of the most open and competitive countries in the world. If you look at other countries, they have a volumetric tax which operates, which obviously discriminates significantly against export of our assembled motor vehicles.
Can I give you an example, without denigrating one of our great partners, but just a true life example, we have a Free Trade Agreement with Thailand, that's good, we import a lot of cars from Thailand, I think we import - I think it's our second biggest importer after Japan. Just after the ink was dry on the Free Trade Agreement, a volumetric tax was put on any import of cars to Thailand which happened to roughly equate to all our manufactured motor vehicles in Australia. So we've had little access into the market.
Now we don't do that, Australia sort of adheres to Free Trade Agreements properly, and the spirit of them. That was not illegal, it wasn't against WTO, but that is writ large in a large number of countries, and Australia stands as one of the few countries which does not undertake anti-competitive practices.
QUESTION: Are we foolish not to respond?
STEVE BRACKS: [Laughs] Well, it's always best - good policy always wins.
QUESTION: You said that Australia should [inaudible] specialisation in [inaudible]. Can you stand by that statement?
STEVE BRACKS: I think I indicated at the time when I released the first discussion paper that our speciality was large and medium cars, and to make them more fuel efficient, reduce the CO2 emissions from them would be a desirable aim. But of course what this report is showing is that this is not a static thing, whilst that's our speciality historically and it has been, rear wheel drive, large and medium cars, the industry in the discovery work that we've undertaken in the last six months, is showing a capacity to change, and the production outcomes in Australia will change as a result.
And I think it's an exciting time, I think we'll see probably some of the biggest changes we've seen over the next five to 10 years, in what is produced by Australian producers, responding to the market. The market is a powerful instrument, you know, if you want to keep going in business, you respond to it, and I think you'll see that happening over the five to 10 years.
QUESTION: [Inaudible]
STEVE BRACKS: Well, there have been some job losses in the industry, but it's still sustaining a large amount of jobs, you cannot predict that matter, I mean could any of us have predicted that in the last, what was it, 10 days, we've seen the Australian dollar go down below 90 cents, when every prediction was that it was likely to be at parity by the end of the year, you cannot predict that. Now that's worth a significant amount to the auto industry, just in the last couple of weeks.
QUESTION: [Inaudible]
STEVE BRACKS: Yes. What is recommended is not only to continue the retrofitting subsidy, that is a subsidy for LPG for consumers who are buying cars, to receive grants for retrofitting, but to up the producer subsidy to an equivalent amount. So I think it's a $2000 subsidy for - someone on the panel can help me, I think it's a $2000 - yes, a $2000 subsidy for a consumer who buys a motor vehicle to have it retrofitted, that's a $1000 subsidy for a producer to have that available when they're producing a new car.
We're recommending, the report's recommending that the producer subsidy be lifted to $2000, so there is more support for LPG technology, and you know, I mean ideally, having a more - higher technology LPG production capacity would be a great advantage to Australia, the technology is years and years old, it's been retrofitted, and some of the new techniques are superior in terms of fuel efficiency, and also CO2 emissions, and this will encourage that, at the very point of production.
Thank you, I think that's probably it. Thank you very much, thank you Minister, appreciate it.
Media contact: Catriona Jackson, Senator Carr's Office - 0417 142 238
Geoff Lewis, Automotive Review Secretariat - (02) 6213 7219
Susan Charles, for Mr Bracks - 0434 077 594