Nick Champion (Wakefield, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

In World War II they had posters that said 'Loose lips sink ships', and we have got a defence minister with the loosest lips in the history of the Federation! Unfortunately, this is all part of the form of the Liberal Party, who have been undermining the Collins class submarine, one of the best diesel electric submarines in the world, since the 1990s. In the 1990s they went after the then Leader of the Opposition, Kim Beazley, who is now the Australian Ambassador to the United States, in a totally partisan attack. They went after the Collins class submarine to undermine the then Leader of the Opposition. And now they are after the Collins class submarine again, they are after the ASC again, they are after workers again.

They have got form on this. This is no mere 'rhetorical flourish' as it was described by the defence minister this morning on 891 ABC. This minister is a blackguard. He is out to get workers, he is out to get the Collins class submarine, he is out to get the ASC and he is out to get South Australia. Loose lips sink ships. The minister is sinking fast because he tried to attack national institutions and he tried to attack workers. He was a bit too smart, a bit too full on, a bit too hot headed in the Senate yesterday. And what do we see? All of this damage. And what do you lot do? There is not one South Australian in the room. We have to roll out these Tasmanians to defend the minister—and even they do not mention the minister's name!

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