Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, I present the committee’s report entitled Review of the Defence annual report 2004-05, together with evidence received by the committee.

Ordered that the report be made a parliamentary paper.

The inquiry into the review of the Defence annual report 2004-05 focused on the activities, achievements and undertakings of the Australian Defence Force and the Department of Defence during the period July 2004 to June 2005. During this period of time, Australian Defence Force personnel were involved in 17 offshore operations, two of which were particularly noteworthy: first, the strengthening of the presence in Iraq with the deployment of a 450-strong task group to the Al Muthanna province and, second, the humanitarian relief effort undertaken in response to the South-East Asian tsunami.

The Al Muthanna Task Group contributed in a real and tangible way to the reconstruction efforts in Iraq. Indeed, members of this committee were privileged to visit the AMTG and observe firsthand the commitment, pride and professionalism of these men and women and the positive impact they were having on the lives of Iraqis in the province. Mr Speaker, you will be aware that the Al Muthanna Task Group have now moved from Al Muthanna to join the Overwatch Battle Group-West, based in the southern Iraqi province of Dhi Qar, where they undertake a security overwatch role as part of a larger coalition force. We continue to wish them well in this new role.

The second noteworthy operation during the 2004-05 period was the tsunami relief operation—another demanding mission and one that was completed with professionalism and compassion. Members of the House will recall that, sadly, the achievements of the Australian Defence Force during this relief operation were tempered by the tragic loss of nine personnel and the injuries of two others in the helicopter crash on Nias in April 2005. Such accidents are a reminder that the men and women of the Australian Defence Force do a dangerous job, often in unforgiving environments, through the spectrum of operations from humanitarian relief to peacekeeping to warlike.

The four major topics reviewed in this report provided the committee with an opportunity to examine how Defence was commanded, managed and operated in the context of the strategic environment and the defence capability review extant at the time.

The first topic examined was the attainment of a prescribed agency status for the Defence Materiel Organisation and the implications of prescription for the ongoing reform process. The committee was also updated on the progress of certain key capital projects and in this context discussed risk mitigation and the project management methodologies that had been developed by the DMO to ensure the effective and efficient management of these projects.

Given the intensity and persistence of ADF operational deployments and the need to maximise the survivability and efficacy of our people and platforms, the committee also examined a range of issues in relation to the Chinook helicopter. In particular, we looked at upgrades to the helicopters and the implications for their deployed role in Afghanistan, as well as having a more general discussion in relation to the enhancement and modernisation of the Australian Defence Force helicopter fleets occurring under Project Air 9000.

Topic three addressed the roles and responsibilities of the Joint Offshore Protection Command. This section focused on the people, the operational tasking and strategic command and control issues. Specifically, we considered the range of current operations, the impact on personnel of maintaining a high tempo and the management and effectiveness of the interagency relationships.

Our final topic was an examination of the progress on the remediation of Defence’s qualified financial statements. While elements of this topic were considered during 2003-04, the ongoing nature of these issues was considered to be of such magnitude that they warranted further examination.

To conclude, during the review of the Defence annual report 2004-05, the Acting Chief of the Defence Force, Lieutenant General Ken Gillespie, and the Secretary of the Department of Defence, Mr Ric Smith, made themselves available for a wide-ranging discussion on current issues in the department. The committee appreciated the candour and commitment displayed by the Defence leadership during this session. The committee would like to record their appreciation for the excellent work that continues to be done by the men and women of the ADF in support of operations in Australia, in our region and around the world. (Time expired)

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