Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

Yes, and you knew who I was talking about, Mr Speaker, didn't you! The reality is that the Labor Party cut defence spending to the lowest level since 1938. It was an outrage. They lost control of our borders. They spent $16 billion on cleaning that mess up. And they took money from our defence personnel. That's the reality.

Now, this government is building for our Defence Force. We are putting money into projects that will employ Australians in regional areas, in South Australia. We're employing people in the Hunter, as the member for Hunter knows, as a former defence minister—and a good defence minister, but not a great defence minister. You can't be a great defence minister if $18 billion is taken from your budget. You can't invest in our personnel, you can't invest in their capability and you cannot hope to keep Australia safe and secure if you pull $18 billion out of the Defence Force. That's the reality.

This government is investing in our country's future. We are investing in the capacity to keep us safe in our region, and we will take whatever decision is necessary to invest in the men and women of the Australian Defence Force. We will make sure that we invest in their present and in their future, because we want to keep our country safe and secure.

See this speech in context