Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

Under the Minister for Defence Industry we wrote $3 billion worth of export permits in the September quarter, one of the highest ever. Applications for defence export permits jumped by 25 per cent in the June quarter. Labor think it's all very funny, but those people who have their jobs in the defence industry, and the servicemen and women of Australia who serve in our Defence Force, who put on the uniform, don't think it's very funny. They think it's amazing that they're getting the equipment and the platforms they need to win in theatres of war, keeping them safe and bringing them home. We don't think it's funny on this side of the House. We see it as a tremendous opportunity to drive a defence industry. This year we have begun construction on the Offshore Patrol Vessels. We've handed over the first of the Pacific Patrol Boats to Papua New Guinea. We've begun construction of the Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle factory in Brisbane in the last month—it was opened by the Minister for Defence Industry, in fact. In June this year we began the construction of the Osborne South Shipyard. We will soon turn a sod on the Osborne North submarine yard. We are investing in shipbuilding in a way that Labor could only dream about. In fact, Labor cut spending on defence by 17.9 per cent in real terms, putting our service men and women at risk.

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