Australia is already the highest priority country for
UK rail exporters, with more than £82 billion
($155billion AUD) being invested by Australia into
its networks over the next decade, including new
cross-country lines and modernised metros in cities
including Melbourne.
All current tariffs on rail-related goods, including
railway stock, track fixtures and fittings, and
traffic signalling equipment are set to
be scrapped as part of the free trade agreement
(FTA), which will allow UK companies to be even more
competitive when bidding for Australian government
contracts worth billions of pounds in the coming
years.
British rail companies will also benefit from new,
legally guaranteed access to bid for Australian
government contracts on an even footing with their
Australian competitors, opening up billions of
dollars of public sector rail contracts.
International Trade Secretary said:
Our rail exports industry is a Global Britain
success story. Australia is undergoing a huge
reconstruction of its train networks and this trade
deal will allow British companies to be even more
competitive when bidding for these massive,
multi-billion-pound infrastructure projects.
These major contracts will support high value jobs
up and down the UK, and allow more of our
professionals to live, work and enjoy life on the
other side of the world.
The deal will allow rail companies to build on some
of the British successes already enjoyed in
Australia’s rail sector. These include manufacturer
Altro’s floor covering, which is used in the
refurbishment of Melbourne’s Trams and on trains in
Victoria and Queensland, and consultancy firm
Ricardo, which makes 25% of its rail revenue in
Australia having won several high-profile projects.
It will also give UK employees more freedom
to work Down Under and allow Brits under 35 to travel
and work in Australia for up to three years as part
of the agreement.
Chairman of the Railway Industry Association, David
Tonkin, said:
Many UK rail suppliers already trade with Australia
- from manufacturing firms in Doncaster to design
companies in London – and with a Free Trade
Agreement they can deliver even more. With
Australia voted as the number one priority market
for rail businesses in the UK, a trade deal will be
welcome news to many, allowing them to more easily
sell our world-leading products and services into
the market.
The UK rail industry is a major exporter, selling
£800 million each year across the world and it has
a pivotal role to play in achieving the
Government’s vision of a ‘Global Britain’,
supporting a clean, environmentally-friendly form
of transport both at home and abroad.
This comes as the Department for International Trade
and Innovate UK launch a competition that will
support UK companies in the rail sector to innovate
globally. The competition will award small businesses
grants of up to £50,000 to help them access growing
markets such in Australia, India, and Canada.
