Labor's Joel Fitzgibbon accuses Coalition of starting 'economic war with China'

Agriculture minister David Littleproud says government has stood up for Australia's values

An opposition frontbencher has accused the Australian government of having started a war with China" and allowing the relationship to slip to its lowest level since the Tiananmen Square massacre.

While launching his mostly strongly worded attack on the government's handling of the relationship to date, the former Labor minister Joel Fitzgibbon also suggested the Coalition should have used this week's budget to compensate Australian barley growers hit by China's 80% tariffs.