trade policy review mechanism

Communication from the Chairperson of the Trade Policy Review Body

Ambassador (Dr) Adamu Mohammed Abdulhamid (Nigeria)

Australia

Arrangements for Review Meeting

1._      In pursuance of Article IV, paragraph 4 and Annex 3 of the WTO Agreement, a meeting of the Trade Policy Review Body is scheduled for 12 and 14 March 2025 to conduct the ninth review of the trade policies and practices of Australia (_WTO/AIR/TPR/173).

2._      This communication sets out arrangements concerning the review meeting. In this connection, attention is also drawn to the procedures for the conduct of reviews contained in the rules of procedure of the Trade Policy Review Body (_WT/TPR/6/Rev.4).

3._      Members' attention is drawn to the use of the "alternative" time‑frame by Australia for submission of written questions and responses.

1  Questions in writing in advance of the meeting AND MAIN POINTS

4._      Members wishing to submit written questions to the Member under review should do so at least five weeks before the review meeting to allow replies to be submitted one week prior to the first session of the meeting. For the forthcoming review, such questions should therefore be with the Trade Policies Review Division of the Secretariat (tprd@wto.org) by 5.30 p.m., on Wednesday, 5 February 2025, at the latest. Advance written questions should reach the Secretariat no later than the day before the start of the meeting, by 2 p.m. at the latest to allow time for the Secretariat to process them. Questions sent on the day of the meeting will be processed after the end of the first session of the meeting. Delegations are informed that Australia has opted for the traditional way of handling questions and answers.

5._      In accordance with the rules of procedure of the TPRB (_WT/TPR/6/Rev.4, paragraph 17), Members are reminded that they should group their written questions into the following three categories so as to facilitate responses: those related to the Secretariat report (with a reference to relevant paragraph numbers); those concerning the Government report (with a reference to relevant paragraph numbers); and other questions.

6._      The Secretariat shall identify the main points contained in the questions submitted at least five weeks before a review meeting, post them on the Members' Website one week before the meeting, and distribute a revised list of main points during the first session of a review when questions received after the five-week deadline give rise to significantly new issues. The main points may be found on the Members' Website under "Forthcoming Meetings: Documents for Meetings".

2  Answers in writing by the MEMBEr under review

7._      Answers by the Member under review should be distributed in writing. Advance questions submitted by the five‑week deadline before the start of the TPRB review date should be answered in writing by the Member under review one week prior to the start of the meeting (5 March 2025). Written answers will be made available on the Members' website four working days prior to the meeting (6 March 2025). Questions posed subsequently should be answered, to the extent possible, before the start of the second session of the meeting. Questions left unanswered at the end of the second session should be answered in writing no later than one month after the meeting with some latitude in the Chair's discretion for Members reviewing a very large number of questions.

8._      In the course of the discussions at the review meeting, the Member under review may indicate that it intends to provide supplementary information, in writing, on specific points raised. Upon receipt, the Secretariat will circulate a document containing this information to all Members.

3  Discussant

9._      In consultation with the Member under review, the Chairperson of the Trade Policy Review Body has chosen H.E. Mrs Pimchanok Pitfield (Thailand) to serve as discussant for the Review of Australia in her personal capacity.

4  Structure of the meeting

10._   Trade policy reviews cover four broad headings:

a._      appreciation of the full range of the Member's trade policies and practices;

b._      relevant background: wider economic and developmental needs, including the external environment;

c._      impact of the Member's trade policies and practices on the functioning of the multilateral trading system; and

d._      general comments by way of assessment and evaluation.

11._   Meetings take place in two sessions. The first session is devoted to the opening statements by the Member under review and the discussant, and remarks and questions from the floor. The discussion in the second session, when the Member under review will reply to questions, is based on main themes identified after the opening meeting by the Chairperson, the discussant and the Secretariat in consultation with the Member.

12._   As indicated in the rules of procedure for TPRB meetings (_WT/TPR/6/Rev.4, paragraph 21), the speakers' list will follow the order in which questions are received by the Secretariat and in the event of more than one batch, the final batch will determine the order of speakers. Delegations not submitting written questions will continue to speak second, in the order in which their flags are raised. On the day before each review meeting, the Secretariat will post on the WTO Members' website a provisional list of speakers for the first session of that meeting, for Members' advance information.

5  Documentation and press arrangements

13._   Reports by the Member under review and the Secretariat are contained in the following documents:

_WT/TPR/G/468            Report by Australia

_WT/TPR/S/468             Australia: Report by the Secretariat

14._   The press embargo for the review of Australia will end at 2 p.m. Geneva time on 12 March 2025.

6  RECORD OF THE MEETING

15._   The record of the meeting will be circulated as a draft to Members for comments on their own statements and placed on the WTO website.

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