Bill
Trade and Investment Agreements (Consultation) Bill 2026
before parliament, as at 2026-07-01. Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio.
- Sponsor
- Not recorded
- Portfolio
- Foreign Affairs and Trade
Recorded stages
- introduced — 2026-07-01
- second reading — 2026-07-01
Divisions
No divisions recorded. Most questions are decided on the voices; this does not establish that a bill was unopposed.
Plain-language summary
Written by a model from the explanatory memorandum; not the record, as at 2026-07-01.
The bill would set up a framework for how Australia consults on and reviews its free trade agreements and bilateral investment treaties.
A new Trade Advisory Group of seven to eight members, including employer, union and non-government representatives, would advise the minister and receive confidential information about negotiations.
The bill would require independent analysis and a five-year review of covered agreements, and would ban investor-state dispute settlement clauses in bilateral investment treaties.
- Establishes a Trade Advisory Group to represent diverse community views and advise on trade negotiations.
- Requires the minister to announce negotiations, publish objectives, and obtain independent analysis before signing covered free trade agreements.
- Bans signing bilateral investment treaties that include investor-state dispute settlement.
- Requires independent five-year reviews of covered free trade agreements after they enter into force.
- Applies different requirements depending on whether negotiations began before or after the bill commences.
- Excludes sectoral agreements, agreements connected with multilateral organisations, and non-binding instruments from coverage.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the minister, the Trade Advisory Group, and the Australian public would be affected.
Sources
em
billhome