The tenth round of Australia – European Union Free Trade Agreement (Australia -EU FTA) negotiations took place virtually from 9 – 19 March. Through more than 60 video conferences, we made substantive progress on a range of issues across the FTA and engaged on our respective market access interests. High-level engagement between Minister Dan Tehan and the EU’s Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis ahead of the round enabled us to narrow differences in a number of outstanding chapters, including provisionally agreeing text in several chapters. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade led the Australian delegation, which included representatives from more than ten government agencies.
Trade in Goods
The Parties made progress on the small number of outstanding issues in the Trade in Goods chapter, including closing an Article on export licensing procedures. In addition, the Parties had constructive discussions on goods market access, including on agricultural market access.
Government Procurement
With the text of the Government Procurement chapter almost complete, the parties held a useful discussion on the future exchange of revised market access offers and how to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome.
Rules of Origin
Good progress was achieved across the Rules of Origin Chapter text, which narrowed down the outstanding issues. The parties held detailed discussions on the cumulation provisions and import processes. The parties discussed agriculture Product Specific Rules (PSRs), as well as PSRs for machinery and other manufactured products. We provisionally agreed a further four PSRs chapters and will convene intersessional discussions to drive further progress.
Customs and Trade Facilitation
The Parties resolved all remaining substantive issues on Customs and Trade Facilitation and provisionally closed the chapter. There are a small number of outstanding issues linked to other chapters of the agreement, including the institutional arrangements.
Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters / Anti-Fraud
The parties agreed key definitions in the Protocol on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters and moved closer to agreeing the only other remaining elements on confidentiality and exceptions. The parties also continued discussions on the EU’s proposed Anti-Fraud mechanism.
Trade Remedies
With most of the Trade Remedies text now agreed, the parties discussed the sequencing of negotiations on a potential bilateral safeguard mechanism with further progress on goods market access.
Competition and Subsidies
On Anticompetitive Conduct and Merger Control, we discussed in detail the concept of derogations in each party’s respective competition laws and continued to work to find a way to reflect this in agreed text.
On Subsidies, we continued to make progress on elements of the text, including with respect to definitions, as well as provisions on transparency and consultations. Both sides are working to narrow differences over how the section will apply to certain subsidies provided to service suppliers and how to deal with subsidies which do not lead to a distortion in the market.
Technical barriers to trade (TBT)
The TBT negotiators progressed work on the chapter text and had detailed discussions on technical regulations, conformity assessment, standards, marking and labelling, and cooperation on market surveillance and non-food product safety. We also had further discussion about the EU’s cars annex market access proposal and how it might interact with Australia’s regulatory system.
Services and Investment
Significant progress was made by the services and investment negotiators. We are close to concluding the Delivery Services chapter and a mutual recognition framework for professional services. We also resolved a number of substantive issues in relation to domestic regulation, temporary entry of natural persons, maritime services and telecommunications services. The parties continued to engage in detailed discussions on their respective services and investment market access interests.
Intellectual Property
The parties discussed all issues in the intellectual property chapter. We agreed more text, including in the general provisions, trademarks and enforcement sections. We continued discussions on geographic indications (GI), specifically by discussing the EU’s proposals on GI chapter text and continued to focus on finding ways forward on issues raised by Australian stakeholders during the Australian public objections process in 2019. Australia reiterated its position that it would not agree to protect EU GI terms unless the overall deal is in our interests.
SPS and Animal Welfare
Negotiations on SPS and animal welfare were constructive with good progress made on sanitary and phytosanitary certification and animal welfare. Further discussions were held on an EU proposal on scientific robustness and transparency.
State-owned Enterprises (SOEs)
The parties continued to narrow outstanding issues in the SOEs chapter negotiations and agreed to meet intersessionally to make further progress.
Energy and Raw Materials
We had further detailed discussions on text and presentations on Australia’s gas sector and the EU’s ongoing due diligence reforms.
Trade and Sustainable Development
Australia and the EU discussed issues across the trade and sustainable development chapter including, labour standards, environmental goods and services, gender equality and sustainable fisheries management.
Dispute Settlement
The parties made progress in the Dispute Settlement chapter and have resolved most outstanding issues.
Digital Trade
The parties agreed an article on exceptions, agreed more text in the definitions and made some progress on text in the Source Code article. Further discussions were held on data and privacy.
Transparency, exceptions, institutional and final provisions
The Transparency chapter is close to being finalised. The parties also engaged in detailed discussions on the Exceptions, Institutional and Final Provisions chapters, where Australia was able to make further attributions on the EU’s recently received proposals.
Next steps
We will hold the eleventh round of negotiations from 1-11 June 2021 and will convene intersessional discussions across a range of chapters.