Tim PALLAS (Werribee – Treasurer, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Economic Growth) (14:25):

It gives me great pleasure to talk about why Melbourne, the most livable city in the world, the only Australian city in the top 10 of the power city index in the world, is a city that is buzzing with excitement at the moment. From economic events to youth summits and meetings with key regional leaders, this week is all about demonstrating exactly why we are the job creation capital of the nation – 530,000 jobs in three years, 130,000 more jobs than New South Wales.

Firstly, I want to extend a warm welcome to Melbourne to international leaders, our Commonwealth colleagues, international business delegates and of course the countless others who are down here for the ASEAN–Australia special summit. This year’s special summit marks 50 years of Australia–ASEAN relations. Just last week I had the great opportunity to launch the Southeast Asia Trade and Investment Snapshot, and it really does provide an outline of stellar performance by this state. Last year Victoria’s two-way merchandise trade with the region reached a record high of $27.4 billion. That is a 50 per cent increase over five years. At the same time investments from South-East Asia in Victoria have supported the creation of 3500 jobs since 2018, leading the nation. Over 45,000 students from South-East Asia studied in Victoria in 2022, and of course exports of food and fibre from South-East Asia amounted to $2.4 billion in the financial year 2018.