The special relationship with Australia – yeah right!

OPINION: Great things were promised by CER (the Closer Economic Relationship with Australia) when it was announced all those years ago, by-and-large both countries have benefited and will continue to benefit.  The trade ties are too close for that not to be so.  And the benefits are mainly in NZ’s favour as they usually are with the junior trade partner.

But Australia has done a number of things in recent years to break down the idea that closer means “special” ie concessionary.  In the end, national interest does over-ride everything else.

The latest move is for NZ students to pay full fees when attending Australia Universities – I assume that special discounts apply in the other direction.  For students, this is not a trivial cost and I am sure there will be a continuing backlash.  And the reaction from the New Zealand Government has been – to put it frankly – supine.  Really just a shrug of the shoulders and “that’s life”. There is certainly no hint of retaliatory measures although I am sure Gerry Brownlie will be in full flight of indignation when he visits Australia later in the week.  To be fair I don’t think retaliatory measures would do much anyway to change anything.

I guess the issue this raises is -” is there such a thing as a special relationship” and if there is what can we reasonably expect from it.

I think special relationships are basically created and sustained by common experience and backgrounds – not by economic advantages and disadvantages.  The latter is a Trade Deal matter and we should recognise it as that.  Special relationships also do no bind the participants to: good manners” – the bad manners shown in many natural families are atrocious but they remain bound nevertheless.  I think the opposite is rather the case – that the relationship is close enough for countries to be themselves and not be hypocritical or not “call a spade a spade”.  The “special relationship” between New Zealand and Britain is a similar case in point.  There is no way we will get preferential treatment out of the Brits unless it suits them but that in no way undermines what is basically a very strong friendship which goes back through two world wars and into the days of empire.  The relationship with Australia is similar.

The distinction between the closer relationship and other types of relationships becomes particularly sharp at times like ANZAC day, when the closer relationship shines bright and is reflected in the words used by both Prime Ministers.  At times like that the relationship can also become very personal – cobber to cobber if you like.  To some it is hypocritical for that to happen one week and our students to be “knifed in the back” the following week with full fees – and that with scant explanation as well.  But it is actually a reflection of the practicalities of economic life and will continue to happen.  What the relationship does do is entitle us to complain vociferously without the relationship being damaged and in many ways that is one of the real values – the ability to speak frankly about things that annoy us or on which we disagree while leaving the friendship fully intact.

And special relationships do mean something when national life and limb are at stake.  There is a strong history of carrying out joint military operations with Australia and if NZ were ever under serious military threat I would be very surprised if the Australians were not quickly at our side.  So, the relationship has many positive aspects outside of the economics sphere.

Overall it is to our benefit, so long may the special relationship last!

By Bas Walker

This is another of Bas Walker’s posts on GrownUps.  Please look out for his articles, containing his Beachside Ponderings.