Molten copper is poured in a workshop which recycles copper in Anqing, in China’s eastern Anhui province on July 11, 2025. AFP via Getty Images
A commercial lawyer is calling for sweeping tariffs on Chinese imports and a fundamental change to the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA), arguing that piecemeal measures will not be enough to rebuild the nation’s industrial base.
In a submission to the General Review of ChAFTA, Dan Ryan, executive director of the National Conservative (NatCon) Institute of Australia, said the country must adopt a more assertive trade policy to safeguard local sovereign manufacturing.
Ryan, a former member of the Australia-China Council, argues “free trade” and cheap overseas production have dismantled Australia’s industrial and manufacturing sector, and that tariffs are needed to support reindustrialisation.
“In our view the reintroduction of tariffs on China are necessary to assist the reindustrialisation of our nation,” the submission said.
“[Non-partisan national security types] believe we can address problems through restrictions on a small number of technologies or industries with significant military potential (semiconductors, electric vehicles, etc.) while maintaining normal economic exchanges in other areas,” the document said.
The submission rejects what it describes as the “high walls, small yard” approach, where only a handful of sensitive industries are protected, saying this was insufficient for rebuilding domestic capability.
Instead, Ryan argues a broad-based approach to tariffs is required, not only to maintain Australia’s export of primary produce and resources to China, but also to protect local Australian manufacturing from cheap competition.
Current Approaches Not Enough
The review also critiques existing policy approaches across the political spectrum.
