· Both sides reaffirm their obligations as members of the International Labour Organization and strive to ensure that their national laws provide for labour standards consistent with internationally recognized labour principles. The agreement makes it clear that it is inappropriate to weaken or reduce occupational health and safety at the national level in order to promote trade or investment between the parties. Chapter 2 of the Free Trade Agreement sets out the conditions of the nature of non-discrimination. Some types of goods are immediately fully applicable to the contract and some are imported over a one-year period or a period of temporary application. · Both sides are committed to setting a high level of environmental protection and not weakening or reducing environmental legislation in order to attract trade and investment. In addition, this section describes customs cooperation to ensure the implementation of the rules of the agreement and outlines possible measures that can be taken when the exporting country appears to be acting in bad faith. Latham reacted unexpectedly by subordinating laboratory support to the free trade agreement to an amendment that would protect PBS. [9] This effectively turned the situation around to Howard: if the government rejected the amendment as unnecessary, it opened up to assertions that it does not protect Australian interests; while he supported the amendment, he tacitly acknowledged that the initial terms of the agreement were insufficient. The bill was eventually amended and passed. · The two sides also agreed to establish a working group on medicines, which will allow for an ongoing dialogue between the United States and Australia on emerging public health issues. In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Australia Therapeutic Goods Administration will work together to accelerate the availability of innovative medical products.

o The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and Biosecurity Australia will hold a permanent technical working group, including the representation of trade agencies, to engage as early as possible in each country`s regulatory process to cooperate in the development of science-based trade measures between the two countries. The United States first proposed a free trade agreement with Australia as early as 1945. More recently, the prospect of an Australia-U.S. The free trade agreement was put in place by the Hawke government in the 1980s. In 1991, U.S. President George H.W. proposed to Bush to negotiate with Australia and New Zealand, but was rejected by Paul Keating, prime minister of the Australian Laboratory Party. [1] · The free trade agreement is sensitive to the concerns expressed by some members of Congress and some United States.