Supply Chains, Government:
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Summary
- The Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF) enables discussion between senior trans-Tasman business leaders and government about ways to improve business and trade between Australia and New Zealand.
- The ANZLF is a core avenue for government to discern cross-cutting business priorities for future initiatives towards a seamless business environment between the two countries, consistent with the Single Economic Market(external link) (SEM) agenda.
- The ANZLF has gone through a strategic restructure over the last year. Both Prime Ministers have acknowledged and appreciated the strategic refresh, ensuring its relevance to business and effectiveness as a voice to governments.
- Since then, the ANZLF has sought to align its policy focus areas and recommendations with New Zealand and Australian government and trans-Tasman business priorities. It has also refined their longer set of recommendations raised by businesses, to a smaller number of items that they hope the Australian and New Zealand government may be able to collectively progress in the short-to-medium term.
- This report outlines the ANZLF’s prioritised recommendations at a high level:
- Consistent standards and regulations
- Climate Change & Sustainability
- Digital Collaboration
- Economic Development (Trade and Investment)
- Regional Engagement.
- It also outlines key ANZLF engagements for the coming year.
Report
Across its priority areas, the ANZLF has emphasised the need for consistent standards and regulations to facilitate trade and investment. This includes implementing joint, interoperable or international standards, and pursuing regulatory coherence whenever feasible, alongside adequate co-funding of standards systems.
Climate Change & Sustainability
On Climate Change & Sustainability, the ANZLF will continue to advocate for interoperable sustainable finance regimes to support cross-border investment and finance net-zero goals. The ANZLF has indicated that it will also focus on support for low-emission technology, in particularly coordinated policies for local alternative fuel production and supply including sustainable aviation fuel.
Digital Collaboration
The ANZLF’s Digital Collaboration theme aims to modernise the economic partnership by aligning digital policy and establishing a seamless trans-Tasman digital trade ecosystem.
The ANZLF have suggested that further work can be done to facilitate areas such as: the adoption of paperless trade, foster the collaborative development of interconnected data infrastructure, encourage the development of ethical AI frameworks, and promote robust and mutually beneficial cybersecurity measures.
Economic Development
ANZLF economic development recommendations will address R&D deficits and build on trans-Tasman innovation efforts across themes through joint R&D initiatives.
Under this theme, the ANZLF intends to maintain a strong focus on boosting inward and outward investment and continue to foster collaboration on indigenous business development and economic empowerment.
Regional Engagement
ANZLF regional engagement recommendations will seek to strengthen Indo-Pacific trade agreements, address trade and defence supply chain challenges, and develop solutions to supply chain disruptions, such as natural disasters, pandemics, and geopolitical instability.
ANZLF recommendations will seek greater strategic integration between the two defence sectors to reinforce the Australia-New Zealand security partnership defence and security capabilities, optimise procurement, and leverage space assets.
Key ANZLF engagements
ANZLF strategic restructure has changed the ANZLF’s previous structures. This section outlines ANZLF’s proposed engagements for 2025.
The ANZLF have offered to continue to host business dialogues alongside key bilateral Ministerial meetings, like those they have hosted alongside standing trans-Tasman Ministerial architecture in 2024. These dialogues bring trans-Tasman CEOs and Ministers to the table, provide opportunities to inform bilateral discussions with a trans-Tasman business perspective and present recommendations to help advance the relationship.
The ANZLF will also hold Strategic Industry Roundtables, each with up to thirty industry participants. These are designed to canvas industry views and utilise expert insights to refine and develop ANZLF recommendations to governments and inform member discussions with Ministers.
Reflecting the ANZLF priority themes (climate change and sustainability, digital collaboration, economic development (trade and investment) and regional engagement), the ANZLF plans to host three Strategic Industry Roundtables in 2025 on defence industry collaboration, digital economy and climate action.
The ANZLF’s 16th Leadership Forum is scheduled for 2-3 September, providing time following the Australian federal election. The one-day event (with a dinner the evening before) will be a smaller and more senior gathering than recent Forums and will involve both business and government participants. The ANZLF have proposed to hold the event in Canberra to maximise Australian ministerial attendance.
Given the evolving global and regional context, as well as the priorities of the Australian and New Zealand Governments and the needs of both nations, the ANZLF Secretariat has proposed that the next ANZLF Leadership Forum focus on addressing shared challenges like climate change and geopolitical shifts and fostering sustainable prosperity for both countries. The Forum’s theme is “Navigating a Turbulent World: Enhancing Trans-Tasman Prosperity, Security and Resilience in a Shifting Geopolitical Landscape”.
Comment
New Zealand and Australia have committed to a process called the Single Economic Market (SEM) agenda, designed to create a seamless trans-Tasman business environment.
New Zealand welcomes businesses, including via the ANZLF, helping Government identify innovative, low-cost actions to reduce discrimination and costs arising from different, conflicting or duplicate regulations or institutions in either country, consistent with the SEM agenda.
If you are facing a barrier in your exports to Australia, we may be able to help you address it. There is no wrong door in asking any of the government agencies who deal with resolving barriers. Visit TradeBarriers(external link) to contact us.
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Disclaimer
This information released in this report aligns with the provisions of the Official Information Act 1982. The opinions and analysis expressed in this report are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views or official policy position of the New Zealand Government. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the New Zealand Government take no responsibility for the accuracy of this report.
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