 Thanks John, and it's a pleasure to be here with John Richardson in my time as Parliamentary Secretary for Trade. I found John and the departmental office here in Victoria to be extremely helpful and I hold their work in the highest regard. I also want to acknowledge the ambassadors of the Pacific Alliance countries. I have spoken about this conference earlier this year in the ANU and I apologise to them that some of my remarks may be familiar. On the other hand I didn't get the opportunity to hear you when I was there because I had to leave for Parliament so I hope to make good in relation to that this morning. I also want to acknowledge Victor Perten who is the President of the Australian New Zealand-Mexico Chamber of Commerce. Victor and I were elected to the Victorian State Parliament on the same day way back in 1980, so we haven't had each other for a very long time. We both had more hair than we did, and there are all sorts of other things that have changed too, but we don't know into any detail. It was a privilege to be the Australian Government's representative to the Pacific Alliance summit in May in Carly in Columbia. It was the first summit open to observers and Australia was honoured to have been admitted as an observer to the Alliance, which we value highly as a manifestation of increasing economic and political links between Australia and the countries of the Pacific Alliance. This Alliance could be very important to Australia and the government and the people of Columbia did a fine job of hosting the event. Its formation comes at a time when the Australian government is stepping up its engagement with Latin American countries. This follows a path which was forged by a growing number of Australian companies already doing business across the continent. The members focus on getting rid of barriers to trade, boosting productivity and promoting the flow of trade and capital across a common market aligns with Australia's own trade priorities. I believe that Australia has much to offer the countries of the Pacific Alliance in mining, in education, in water, in renewable energy. The Australia Chile Free Trade Agreement, which is a high-quality agreement, provides a strong link to the Pacific Alliance. As a consequence of that agreement, we've seen trade grow by 27.5% annually since the agreement entered into force back in 2009. We share a similar geography and similar experiences. There's already a great deal of trade and interaction between our countries but I think there can be more. Like the members of the Pacific Alliance, the Australian government believes in the ability of trade to improve living standards and foster a robust economy. We have a proven track record, having been at the cutting edge of trade liberalisation as it has progressed over several decades. One in five jobs in Australia is believed to be linked directly to trade. We've experienced nearly 22 years of uninterrupted annual growth. And today, Australia, like members of the Pacific Alliance, is party to some of the most innovative trade deals currently being negotiated. We are building on the ASEAN Australia New Zealand Free Trade Area that came into force in 2010 and it was one of Australia's most ambitious trade deals today. It's our largest FTA, covering goods, services, intellectual property, e-commerce, temporary movement of business people, competition and economic cooperation. It spans 12 economies and represents a market of over $640 million for the combined GDP of $4 trillion. It will eliminate 90% of tariffs on Australia's current exports to some of our key trading partners by 2020, providing enormous opportunities for Australian businesses. Today, along with Mexico, Chile, Peru, seven other nations, we are negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreements. Currently, TPP members account for nearly 40% of global GDP and almost 800 million people. The Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement will be more than a traditional trade agreement. It will address behind the border impediments to trade. It will be a living agreement, allowing flexibility to deal with emerging issues and for expanding membership. And it has the potential to become a building block for economic integration in the Asia-Pacific. Another ambitious trade deal working towards a free trade region of the Asia-Pacific is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement launched last year. The 16 negotiating parties of that agreement, including Australia, account for almost half the world's population, almost 30% of the world's GDP and a quarter of all exports. This ASEAN-driven agreement complements the TPP negotiations. It provides competitive tension, and it will strengthen the ambition held by all involved to deliver outcomes that will lead to an open and integrated region. Most importantly, both the RCEP and the TPP are pathways towards achieving APEX goal of a free trade area of the Asia-Pacific. A free trade area for the Asia-Pacific region would bring enormous benefits for individual countries, for the region, and for the world. Back in 2005, around 45% of the world's output growth was from Asia. By 2025, this is forecast to rise to 60%, accounting for almost half of the world's entire economic output. By 2025, four of the world's 10 largest economies are likely to be in the Asian region, China, India, Japan, Indonesia. Last October, the Australian government released the white paper on Australia in the Asian century. The government commissioned the white paper to best position Australians to benefit from and contribute to Asia's rise. It outlines a big vision for Australia and Australia that is even more integrated with Asia. We're already deeply connected to the region. Almost 62% of our total trade last year was with Asia. In the same year, we received almost 400,000 student enrollments from the region and over 1.7 million Australians were born in Asia. But that white paper process has crystallized our resolve to become even more interconnected. And some of the things that we committed to in the white paper include building Asia capabilities among our young people, strengthening access for Australian investment in Asian markets, and increasing the number of Australian businesses working across cross-border value chains, which have sprung up across the region. Now, how is this relevant to the Pacific Alliance? The answer is, as the government outlined in the white paper, Australia can act as a connecting rod between Latin America and Asia. In particular, Australia has much to share with members of the Pacific Alliance as they pursue their core objective of linking more closely with the Asia Pacific. We often cite the healthy growth in trade between Australian and Latin American countries in recent years to support or as evidence of the growing ties between us. Two-way trade between Australia and Latin America has grown from around a billion dollars in 1990 to almost eight billion dollars last year. Taken together, the Pacific Alliance countries account for around five billion dollars of that eight billion dollars. Its four members, Mexico, Chile, Peru, Colombia, are some of the most economically dynamic and liberal countries in Latin America and make up a third of the region's output. The Pacific Alliance is a free trade agreement described recently by the economist as exciting, inspiring and intriguing. And you only need to look at some of the outcomes from the summit in May to get a sense of why the Pacific Alliance has been described in this way. Members agreed to eliminate 90% of all tariffs on merchandise trade once the agreement enters into force with total abolition of all tariffs being the ultimate goal. Members also agreed to eliminate all visas between member countries for business travel and tourism. And a further seven countries became observers, including Ecuador, France, Honduras and Portugal. While it will be important for it to consolidate its work to date, I'm very impressed by all that's been achieved by the Alliance since it was formally established so recently. And this is not just a story of the benefits that come from liberalizing trade, but this is a broader story about increasing ties between our people and the benefits of plugging into those cross-border value chains. And it is in these areas where there are examples of Australia serving already as a link between Latin America and Asia. More than 250 Australian companies are now working in Latin America. Of these, many Australian mining companies extract minerals and metals there and then export them to customers in Asia through new and existing supply chains. Likewise, Brazilian, Chilean and Mexican firms are investing in Australia in beef, coal, manufactured food, auto parts and beauty products which are supplied to Asian customers. Finally, Australian schools and universities have become a hub for interaction between young Latin Americans and Asians. Last year 32,000 student enrolments in Australia were from Latin America joining nearly 400,000 enrolments from Asia. These three examples show just how Australia can serve as a link between Latin America and Asia. They provide real examples of what we envisage a more integrated Asia-Pacific region will actually look like. Where goods and services are able to be traded seamlessly across borders and where we're able to build on our trading strengths by working together. Arben Subramanian of the Peterson Institute for International Economics wrote earlier this year that multilateral trade as we've known it will progressively become history. I think the important phrase in this sentence is as we have known it. This current period for international trade will probably go down in history as an extremely difficult time for the WTO system but it will probably be equally seen as a period of renaissance for multilateral trade. A period where creativity and cooperation between like-minded countries has led to some extremely innovative ways to break down barriers to trade and further trade liberalisation. At the forefront of this innovation stands the Pacific Alliance so we are very pleased to be now an observer of the Pacific Alliance. We feel that observer status gives us opportunities to be involved which are relevant for us without perhaps distracting the Alliance by asking it to focus on questions of membership. We have a lot to share in terms of our knowledge and experience of working closely with Asia for several decades and our economy stands as a beacon of resilience in the world. Unlike virtually every developed economy we avoided recession and saved hundreds of thousands of jobs in the face of the worst global conditions since the Great Depression. We have low inflation, low interest rates, AAA credit rating, low unemployment and low public sector debt. The Australian government has been able to cut taxes, reform business taxation and assist small businesses with increased tax deductions. We're excited about the future for the Australian and Latin American relationship as we trade more, as we share more, as we build solid and long-lasting relationships. Thank you.