Response to Minister for Trade

30 October 2015

The Honourable Mr Andrew Robb MP
Minister for Trade
Commonwealth Government of Australia
CANBERRA ACT 2600

Dear Minister:

AUSTRALIA AT WORLD EXPOSITIONS

Thank you for your letter of 13 October 2015 to my local Federal Member Mr Stuart Robert MP's office with regards to my representation to you regarding Australia at Milan World Expo 2015 and subsequent World Expositions.

I acknowledge your Department's response and the effort made to secure representation at Milan, however unsuccessful.

Every World Exposition is a one-off event, unique to the host city, unique to the world, and unique to that epoch and time. The theme of the Expo gives us a further opportunity to communicate Australia's objectives on the world stage.

Unfortunately, like any advertisement, it costs money to have a shop front, but we run into the danger of "advertising" that Australia is "closed for business", if we do not make the effort for a Pavilion at these pinnacle public diplomacy events.

But lack of Government funding should not be a stumbling block for no representation at a World's Fair, as the USA example (and others) shows.

Wouldn't it therefore, be far better that the portfolio for Australia at World Expositions be moved to Austrade where that agency would be better able to facilitate and promote Australian private enterprise representation and funding of an Australian Pavilion?

Whilst a fully private enterprise funded Australia Pavilion has, I believe, not been explored before, now, as Astana and Dubai, loom, maybe it is time to investigate such an approach.

And given the microcosm and myriad of business transactions which take place amongst international participants at a World Fair, I believe that geopolitical relations with the host nation, whilst important, need to be a second tier rationale for representation at an Expo, with the ability to network with the global community and articulate the Expo theme to Australia's advantage at a World's Fair to be the principal non-financial deciding factors.

Australia in its modern history has been a proud representative in World Exposition history, including hosting World Expositions in Sydney, Melbourne, and recently Brisbane 1988, with Australian representation at World Expositions being amongst the most awarded and memorable of any nation's Pavilions.

We need not however forget the important role of World Expositions in the peaceful promotion of global understanding and trade relations, objectives that Australia proudly also upholds, and we also need not run into the danger of "resting on our laurels".

Correspondingly, I ask that your Department, on behalf of the Australian nation, take into serious consideration the matters raised in this letter.

I await your response.

Yours sincerely

John R McGregor
Celebrate 88!
- Celebrating Brisbane's World Expo '88 and Australia at World Expositions -

celebrate@celebrate88.com
http://www.celebrate88.com/

Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

Co-host The World's Fair Podcast
http://www.worldsfairpodcast.com

http://www.facebook.com/celebrate88/
http://twitter.com/celebrate88
http://YouTube.com/foundationexpo88/
http://worldexpositionssnapshot.blogspot.com

 Tel +614384 89135

"It is a great and glorious end to bless the sons of man,
And meet for peace and doing good, in kindness, while we can;
It is a greater, and more blest, the human heart to raise
Up to the God who giveth all, with gratitude and praise."

Excerpt from prose by Martin Tupper Farquhar, on the 1851 London Crystal Palace Exhibition

Response from Minister for Trade

Response from/to DFAT re: Australian Representation

Ms Lou Anderson
A/g Secretary
Public Diplomacy Division
DFAT Canberra ACT 2600

16 September 2015


Dear Ms Anderson

Thank you for your considered response with regards to my enquiry concerning Australian representation at the next two World's Fairs in Astana and Dubai.

I acknowledge your comments re: the tight budgetary position which has precluded Australian representation at Milan, however this, as in the USA case where no State Government funding can be used for representation at an Expo, and other similar cases, need not be a stumbling block in forging a Pavilion at future Fairs, but rather should be a conduit for a Government facilitated and private enterprise funded Pavilion. Diplomatic ties are of course not the only consideration here - and this is perhaps where Austrade through DFAT can pull more weight.

World's fairs are the cultural and trading Olympic games and are the pinnacle event for public diplomacy and nation branding for their given year. Being absent is a glaring and embarrassing omission, not only in bilateral relations with the host nation, but also in terms of the microcosm web of interlinked multilateral exchange amongst participating nations at the Expo itself.

Given the above, I find tight budgetary concerns by cabinet, or perceived lack of compelling geopolitical reasons to be represented at the host nation is a weathered down argument that does not wash well with me, who has seen a string of very successful Australia Pavilions since our own hosting of our very successful World Expo 88 in Brisbane.

In terms of diplomatic reciprocity alone, given that Italy was represented at World Expo 88, the Australian representation at Milan should have been given a high priority from 2 years out. And yet there was no communication from the Government - or even Parliamentary debate for that matter concerning Australia's glaring absence from Milan. A very disappointing outcome.

Australia has been an active participant in the world of world's fairs almost since their inception over 150 years ago, as a young vibrant nation they give us an unparalleled opportunity to further Australia's interests on the world stage.

The decision to not be represented at Milan must be criticised at the highest levels, hence my representation to the Senate.

We must make sure that such short-sightedness does not become the absent rubber stamp from representation at future World Expositions, and correspondingly I shall continue to lobby the Commonwealth Government to raise awareness of this issue, including considering moving the portfolio of representation at World's Fairs to Austrade and not Foreign Affairs.

I look forward to keeping your office informed.

With sincere regards

John R McGregor
Celebrate 88!
- Celebrating Brisbane's World Expo '88 and Australia at World Expositions -

celebrate@celebrate88.com
http://www.celebrate88.com/

Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

Co-host The World's Fair Podcast
http://www.worldsfairpodcast.com

http://www.facebook.com/celebrate88/
http://twitter.com/celebrate88
http://YouTube.com/foundationexpo88/
http://worldexpositionssnapshot.blogspot.com

Tel +614384 89135

"It is a great and glorious end to bless the sons of man,
And meet for peace and doing good, in kindness, while we can;
It is a greater, and more blest, the human heart to raise
Up to the God who giveth all, with gratitude and praise."

Excerpt from prose by Martin Tupper Farquhar, on the 1851 London Crystal Palace Exhibition

"Anderson, Lou" <Lou.Anderson@dfat.gov.au> wrote:

Hello John
Thanks for passing on a copy of your letter to Lisa Wright.

I am unable to meet while you are in Canberra tomorrow as I have a full dairy, but I can tell you that has been no decision taken on Australia's participation in Dubai Expo 2020.

As you are aware, in light of the very tight budget environment in Australia and the high cost of participation in world expos, the Government decided not to participate in the World Expo in Milan in 2015. Through our Embassy in Rome and Consul General in Milan, we continue to support Australian trade, tourism and networking events in the lead up to, and during, the Milan Expo.  And while Australia will not participate in the Expo, we have a significant public diplomacy footprint in Italy during 2015 through the Venice Biennale, managed by the Australia Council.

The Australian Government will consider any future participation in world expos on as a case by case basis evaluating events which reflect strong economic links, compelling business benefits and private sector support, as well as the right fiscal environment in Australia for Government to finance participation.

Happy for you to keep in touch but I imagine there will be no developments to share before the end of the year.

Kind regards
Lou


Lou Anderson
_______________________________
Director | Advocacy, Events and Outreach
Public Diplomacy Branch | Public Diplomacy and Communications Division
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Open Letter to DFAT Re: Australia at Astana 2017/Dubai 2020

15 September 2015

The Hon Stuart Robert MP
Federal Member for Fadden
Commonwealth Government of Australia

Ms Lisa Wright
Assistant Secretary
Public Diplomacy Division
Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade


Dear Mr Robert, Ms Wright:

AUSTRALIA AT EXPO 2017 ASTANA KAZAKHSTAN

Firstly let me congratulate your offices on our new Prime Minister the Honourable Malcolm Turnbull MP.

I write to you on this occasion with regards to Australian representation at the next World Exposition in Astana Kazakhstan in 2017.

As you may know, this year's World Expo is in Milan Italy and unfortunately in the Abbott Government's first budget, no funding was allocated for an Australian Pavilion at Milan - the first time in nearly 50 years that Australia has not been represented at a Universal Exposition.

I had written to DFAT, and the Prime Minister's Office 18 months from the commencement of Milan 2015 to express my concern of no announcement of a Pavilion and furthermore to the Senate Standing Committee into Defence Foreign Affairs & Trade as to why a private enterprise model Pavilion could not be investigated, but both to no avail.

Although this is disappointing, it need not be a precedent for lack of an Australia Pavilion at future World Expositions such as that at Astana 2017 and Dubai 2020 - the next Universal Exposition after Milan, and I write to your offices at this early junction to ascertain the Government's position on a Pavilion for Australia at Astana 2017 and Dubai 2020.

I look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely


John R McGregor
Celebrate 88!
celebrate@celebrate88.com
Tel 04384 89135