UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement: sustainability and inclusion explainer (web version)
Published 16 December 2021
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This deal is more comprehensive than any trade deal Australia has ever done before to address the shared challenges of climate change, environmental conservation, labour standards, gender inequality and international development.The deal includes Australia’s first ever bilateral development chapter and trade and gender equality chapter. It maintains our high standards and will see greater co-operation between the UK and Australia on these issues.
Low-carbon economy
The deal will help to tackle climate change by creating new opportunities to grow the low-carbon economy – benefiting both the environment and jobs.
UK businesses will benefit from zero tariffs on all low carbon exports to Australia including on wind turbine parts (previously up to 5%) and electric vehicles (previously 5%).
The deal is supported by the UK-Australia Clean Technology Partnership, which was signed in July 2021. This partnership will boost investment in each other’s low-carbon economies and see more UK and Australian firms collaborating on innovative new technologies.
Climate change
The deal commits the UK and Australia to work together on climate change and affirms both parties’ commitments to upholding all of their obligations under the Paris Agreement. The UK retains our sovereign right to regulate.
Environmental commitments
The UK and Australia will work together on a range of environmental issues, including commitments to:
- combat illegal logging and related trade
- co-operate on the transition towards a circular economy, including encouraging reuse, repair and re-manufactures, and resource efficient design
- control trade in ozone-depleting substances and co-operate on environmentally friendly alternatives
- prevent pollution from shipping and co-operate on addressing marine litter, including plastics and microplastics
- promote conservation (including of sharks, turtles, seabirds)
- tackle subsidies that contribute to overfishing, and enforcement to deter illegal fishing
- conserve biodiversity and to tackle illegal trade in wild flora and fauna
The agreement also ensures that neither Australia nor the UK can deviate from our environmental laws in order to promote trade and investment. Both parties have recourse to dispute settlement mechanisms if needed.
Trade and gender equality
This deal includes the first dedicated chapter on trade and gender equality that Australia has signed up to. It will support women as business owners, entrepreneurs, and workers to fully access and benefit from the opportunities created by this deal.
The UK and Australia commit to sharing experiences and evidence to increase women’s access to markets, leadership networks, and finance, and to help overcome barriers that may be disproportionately experienced by women traders. We will drive progress over time through better integrating gender into trade-related data and analysis. A new dialogue will provide a space to hear the views of women in trade.
Trade and development
This deal includes the first ever dedicated development chapter within a bilateral free trade agreement between two advanced economies. This is critical for the monitoring of any impacts of the deal on developing countries. The UK and Australia will also share best practice on technical assistance and capacity building and work together on trade and investment issues that matter to developing countries.
Labour protections
The deal maintains the UK and Australia’s high labour protections with enforceable and binding provisions. UK stakeholders will have the opportunity for consultation and active engagement. The deal includes precedent-setting commitments to prevent modern slavery in global supply chains.