Matt Burnell (Spence, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Yesterday afternoon, I alongside many from this place joined together at the Australian War Memorial for a last post ceremony. First occurring 10 years ago, it serves a dual function both to mark the commencement of the new sitting year of our parliament and also for members and senators present to reflect on the price paid for the freedoms we enjoy as Australians and on those who fought for Australia and our democracy. Given our role as elected representatives within our democratic system, I feel that we must ensure that the duty and sacrifice of those who have defended and served our nation retain a place at the forefront of our minds.

I am proud to serve as the co-chair of the Parliamentary Friends of Veterans, and I note my fellow co-chair on the other side of the room, the member for Menzies. It is a group that helps promote and connect many veteran groups and initiatives with members and senators from all parts of the country, from government through to opposition and the crossbench. This couples with the fact that, from within this place and out in my electorate of Spence, I represent roughly 6,000 veterans and Australian Defence Force personnel. This number puts Spence first amongst South Australian electorates and 16th out of all electorates nationwide.

Many of the currently serving ADF personnel in my electorate of Spence are stationed at RAAF Base Edinburgh, where I had the privilege of joining the Assistant Minister for Defence recently to send off around 90 ADF members from 7 RAR, who would soon travel to the UK to assist with the training of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as part of Operation Kudu. I know that, back in November last year when the Deputy Prime Minister visited the base along with me, the efforts of 7 RAR were a particular point of pride. Their work as part of this operation is one of vital importance in maintaining our global rules based order and helping to equip Ukraine's armed forces with the training necessary to defend their homeland from Russia's illegal war of aggression.

RAAF Base Edinburgh is also home to personnel who engage in operations ranging from maritime surveillance and reconnaissance through to cyber operations with 462 Squadron. With such cutting-edge technology and vehicles being operated from the base, it is little wonder that DSTG has called Adelaide's northern suburbs 'home' since before the base was constructed, let alone officially opened. I am honoured to represent an electorate that so many Defence personnel can call 'home' along with their families. That's why many schools in Spence don't just teach students who are part of our Defence families; they play an active role in supporting their wellbeing. Many schools in Spence take great pride in this fact and are part of the Defence School Mentor Program. Through employing a defence school mentor and facilitating a number of programs and initiatives, these schools are better equipped to help students from defence families thrive with their ongoing education and transitioning into and out of their respective school communities and to help mitigate some of the challenges uniquely faced by children in defence families. I am pleased to say that, out of the 19 South Australian schools that are part of this program, 11 of them are in Spence. This includes schools such as Gawler & District College B—12 and Hewett Primary School, which I have had the pleasure of visiting to see some of the work they do in this space.

These efforts to support our kids go hand in hand with the Malinauskas Labor government in SA, who have taken steps to put systems in place to make it easier for parents to identify themselves as being current or former serving members of the ADF, meaning that schools can provide them with the supports they need upon enrolment. This is an initiative that was championed by organisations such as Lidia Hall's Resolute Ready and Hayley Boswell's Defence Kidz. These are two individuals dedicated to assisting defence personnel, veterans and their families. I've had the pleasure of hosting both of them at my electorate office and my office here over the past year.

I always have a lot of time for people who are dedicated to improving the lives of those out there who dedicate themselves to making life just that little bit easier for ADF members past and present. That is particularly why, from my earliest days as Labor's candidate for Spence, I began fighting for the establishment of a veterans wellness hub within the electorate. All the way back in March 2022 I stood alongside the member for Blair, the then shadow minister for veterans affairs, where we made the commitment to invest in the health and wellbeing of veterans residing in Spence and surrounding areas through the building of one of these hubs.

Since my election to this place, and the election of the Albanese Labor government, my resolve to make this a reality has only intensified. Throughout this time I've held several meetings with the veteran community in Spence and with a number of other stakeholders, to listen to their feedback about what a veteran and family wellbeing hub should be and how it can best serve the thousands of men and women who have served their country with distinction. This culminated in the Minister for Veterans' Affairs flying out to Spence on no less than three occasions as part of delivering on our promise. It is my longstanding hope that this hub will provide invaluable support to veterans and their families through a number of programs, ranging from support groups to assistance with transitioning to civilian life and civilian employment.

In Spence I'm glad to see that veterans are not alone in that journey dealing with difficulties of transitioning from active service to being a civilian. Spence is home to many businesses that pride themselves as veteran employers. Many of these businesses are owned and operated by veterans, and have a workforce composed mostly of veterans. Many of these companies operate within our defence industry or in areas adjacent to it. This further underscores the importance of the defence industry in Spence and in South Australia, an industry that makes a significant contribution to employment and economic activity in my electorate and state. It also makes a significant contribution towards building Australia's sovereign capabilities and contributes towards projects that help Australia to defend itself and its interests abroad.

The scaling up of Australia's defence industry in recent years has provided much needed economic activity and jobs, particularly in areas that suffered the impact of the closure of the automotive manufacturing industry. This is particularly true in Adelaide's north, being the former home of the General Motors Holden manufacturing plant. It's closure in 2017 saw many knock-on effects, with thousands of workers losing their jobs both at Holden and at companies that relied on Holden for a large portion of their business, such as components manufacturers. Well within the past decade, 2017 is far from being relegated to ancient history by any means. The thought of having a thriving manufacturing industry that we could all be proud of again seemed like a mere pipedream.

In the years that followed, the former Holden manufacturing plant was reborn into Lionsgate Business Park, in no small part due to the fantastic work that Paschal Sommers did to make Lionsgate a hub for industry growth in the north. Success stories such as this, especially ones that follow such a spiritual and economic loss of a company like Holden, are a large part of why I was delighted to have been able to show the Minister for Industry and Science through Lionsgate. With tenants such as Epicurean Food Group and Select Plastics, it proves that the north is not just open for business but also supports a diverse range of industries. This is also true of another tenant at Lionsgate, Levett Engineering, who is a proud part of the defence industry, not just at Lionsgate but also a proud member of the Edinburgh Industry Alliance.

Having defence industry on a GMH plant is not historically unusual by any means. Prior to being located in Elizabeth, the GMH plant in Woodville, along with many other plants across the state and the nation, was repurposed to produce guns, tanks and military aircraft parts during the Second World War. It is fitting to see defence manufacturing return to a former Holden plant.

Beyond Lionsgate, South Australia is home to a vibrant and growing defence industry, an industry that currently accounts for 3.8 per cent of gross state product. It accounts for roughly two per cent of all jobs and has hundreds of companies that form part of this sector, including seven out of the world's top 10 defence companies. It reminds me that quite often South Australia really does punch above its weight on a number of fronts. This is especially true of our defence industry.

Recently I had the chance to meet with around 80 of these companies as part of a showcase at the Indo-Pacific maritime expo in Sydney late last year, led by South Australia's deputy premier and defence industry minister, Susan Close. It was an event that saw the largest number of exhibitors from across Australia in its history. It was only appropriate that South Australia's best and brightest from our defence industry would fit right in amongst them. In my electorate of Spence, the growth of the defence industry is not just a matter of economic development; it's a matter of pride and identity. Our contributions in this sector are a testament to our community's resilience, innovation and commitment to the nation. And this was clearly on display at the expo.

The jobs of tomorrow are not just on the distant horizon. Through many long-term projects in our defence industry pipeline, we are poised to reap the benefits. The strategic importance of South Australia within our national defence landscape is clear. With defence infrastructure present within our state, along with universities and vocational education providers on the ground ready to train and develop a skilled workforce locally, the economic benefits of a thriving defence industry are pivotal in ensuring that South Australia continues to be known as Australia's defence state not just in the years to come but in the decades ahead. And, I must say, that is a title certainly worth defending.

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