New Prime Minister  
The Hon. Scott Morrison MP was sworn in as the 30th Prime Minister of Australia on 24 August 2018. Since entering federal politics as the Member for Cook in New South Wales, the Prime Minister has held several parliamentary positions, most recently serving as Treasurer, where he travelled to Chengdu in July 2016 for the G20 Finance Ministers Meeting (pictured below, with UK Chancellor of the Exchequer RT Hon Philip Hammond MP).  

New ministerial appointments include: 

• Senator the Hon. Marise Payne as Minister for Foreign Affairs; 
  

• Senator the Hon. Simon Birmingham as Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment;
  

• Senator the Hon. Anne Ruston as Assistant Minister for International Development and the Pacific; 
  

• The Hon. Mark Coulton MP as Assistant Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment.

Smart China
Consul-General Lim and Industry, Innovation and Science Counsellor Joanna Bunting visited Chongqing to join the inaugural "Smart Technology: Empowering Economy, Enriching Life" expo on 23 August. 

An Australian pavilion at the expo displayed the "smart" services of Australian companies including Eastern Elevators and MOX, arranged with the help of AustCham West China. During the expo, visitors also had the chance to see displays of cutting-edge driverless car technology, and attend forums on semiconductors and machine learning, including by University of Melbourne artificial intelligence specialist Professor Rao Kotagiri (pictured below centre left, with Alibaba's Ma Yun, centre right).

Mid-term Consultations

Over three weeks in July, Consul-General Christopher Lim conducted his mid-term consultations. These consultations were an opportunity for an update on Australia’s priorities in its relations with southwest China and to meet Australian stakeholders with direct interests in this region. Two of these stakeholders are South Australia (above, with Governor Hieu Van Le) and Cochlear (below, with Senior Vice President Greg Bodkin).

Consul-General Lim’s visit covered six capital cities (Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide) and included 90 engagements with over 500 government, business, education and cultural representatives (such as Asialink Business, pictured below). Consul-General Lim said he was pleased to see firsthand the “strong interest in Australia in exploring the opportunities created by our growing ties with southwest China”. 

Following the visit, Consul-General Lim's term has been extended by one year. He will now represent the Australian Government in southwest China until January 2021!

Odyssey: An Australian Photographer in China
Australian curator Catherine Croll’s “Odyssey: An Australian Photographer in China” will be on display at the Changjiang Museum of Contemporary Art, Chongqing, from 15 September.

The exhibition brings together the photographic works of Australians in southwest China over the past 120 years, including adventurer George Morrison, sinologist Charles Patrick Fitzgerald and travelling fabric salesman Harry Glathe. 

Infrastructure, Transport and Cities Committee Visit 
A group of Australian parliamentarians experienced Chengdu firsthand when the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Infrastructure, Transport and Cities visited in early July to exchange views and learn about the city’s plans for meeting its growing infrastructure and transportation needs.   

Acting Consul-General Tony Walter and Trade and Investment Commissioner Tim White joined the delegation, led by the Hon. John Alexander OAM MP (above far left), on a tour of some of Chengdu’s major infrastructure projects, including the metro expansion and the Qingbaijiang Railway Port, and for meetings with urban planning authorities. The other members of the parliamentary delegation were the Hon. Trent Zimmerman MP, the Hon. Andrew Giles MP and the Hon. Ted O’Brien MP (below, left to right, following the Hon. John Alexander OAM MP).  

The delegation also met the Vice Chair of the Sichuan People’s Congress, Mr Hou Xiaochun, and members of the Australian business community and state government representatives in Chengdu.   

Need a new Passport?  

From 1 July 2018, glasses are not permitted in passport photos when applying for an Australian passport.

Stay Fresh  

Consul-General Lim launched the “Fresh Australia” food festival in Kunming on 3 August. Locals had the chance to enjoy a selection of fresh Australian produce, including bluefin tuna (pictured) and wagyu beef, some on sale for the first time in southwest China.  

The event, organised by the Australian Trade and Investment Commission, is now in its eighth year. Ruan Liming, General Manager of festival partner Parkson Shopping Centre Kunming, noted that “Australia’s clean, safe and healthy products are popular among our customers”. 

Chengdu International Bookstore Forum 

Joel Becker, CEO of the Australian Booksellers Association, will participate in the “From Bookstores to Their Reader” forum at 2.30pm, Sunday 16 September, at Fangsuo Commune Chengdu. Readers are warmly invited to attend the event, part of the 2018 Chengdu International Bookstore Forum. Keep an eye on the Fangsuo Commune website for more updates 

Consul-General’s Blog #21 "Reflections on home: a trip back to Australia"  

"What is it like coming back to Australia after a period living in southwest China? Recently, I embarked on what is referred to as mid-term consultations. As the term suggests, halfway through the term of an ambassador or consul-general, we return home to meet stakeholders across Australia to discuss ways to further Australian interests in the countries or regions where we’re based. It is a good opportunity to hear an update on Australian priorities before returning to recalibrate our work".