Andrew McKellar interview on ABC News Channel regarding US tariffs
Transcript: 24 July, 2026
Ros Childs:
Andrew McKellar from the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry joins us now. Good to see you, Andrew. So can we clarify, first of all, this 12.5 per cent tariff replaces that temporary 10 per cent tariff. So Australia's rate will increase by two and a half percent. That's what's happening?
Andrew McKellar:
Hi, Ros. That's as we understand it. Of course, that's disappointing. We had up until now been levied with that 10 per cent temporary tariff, which was amongst the lowest for any country. So to see it increase to 12.5 per cent, it's disappointing. We'd say it's actually a ludicrous decision. It's completely unjustified. I think we have to understand that this is a pretext, really. The rationale that's been given for why the United States is imposing this additional tariff on Australia really has no basis at all. They've tried to link it to so-called forced labour issues. But the reality is Australia has some of the highest standards to combat modern slavery of any country in the world. We have a very strict legislative regime. It applies to companies with turnover above a hundred million, and it's very stringent. It's among the strongest protections in the world.
Ros Childs:
So there will be exemptions to this tariff, won't there? What real difference will it make to our trade with the US?
Andrew McKellar:
Well, there are some existing exemptions around beef and copper and gold and some other different arrangements. This will be a more general arrangement. We have to see. Obviously, it may have some impact in terms of some of the exports that we're sending to the US. But more broadly, I think the concern will be that it'll impact US customers as heavily as anybody. They'll end up paying more. And the reality is that the tariffs that have been applied to date, I think Australian exporters have demonstrated they're extremely competitive. They are resilient. If anything, the value of trade, the value of exports to the US has gone up in the last 12 months. So I think we've just got to continue to focus on the things that we do extremely well. We've worked very constructively with the Australian government, the level of representations in Washington to the US administration and by the government in Canberra.
They've worked very closely with business to ensure that the impact of this is minimised.
Ros Childs:
Have you heard from a lot of your members today on this? Are they angry?
Andrew McKellar:
Look, there's been some discussion. I think people are puzzled and we have to see what the impact will be. I mean, I think big exporters to the US will be processing this and looking at what that impact will be, how it will impact contracts and future pricing decisions. But one step at a time, as we say, there's no justification for it.
Ros Childs:
So Andrew, Australia's getting a tariff of 12.5 per cent. Some other countries are being hit by a tariff of 10 per cent, which is obviously lower. Why is ours higher?
Andrew McKellar:
Well, it's very puzzling, and that's obviously something that we will be looking to work with the Australian government to make representations to the administration to find out why they think that's justified. We see no justification for it. We are one of the countries with the highest standards to protect against modern slavery, forced labour conditions, wherever it is in the supply chain. In fact, Australia is a much better rated country than the United States in that regard. So honestly, it's very puzzling. And we will be interested to hear what the explanation is if there is one.
Ros Childs:
So you're going to fight back against this?
Andrew McKellar:
I think we just have to be realistic about this. I think the approach that government and business have taken on this have been realistic. We've made very strong representations to the US administration in the past on this. We'll continue to do that. We'll continue to work with government. We have to focus on what we're good at. There's no point seeking to retaliate. We've got to ensure that we're continuing to push to get as much access as we can into the US market, but also to diversify into other markets. So whether that's in Southeast Asia, whether that's in Europe, we've got a new free trade agreement with the EU coming up for consideration. It's important that we progress that. We've got to look at how we can grow trade with India as well as some of the other emerging markets where we've got opportunities.
Ros Childs:
Andrew McKellar, good to talk to you. Thank you.
Andrew McKellar:
Thanks, Ros.