Josh Wilson (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Without question, shipbuilding is the apex form of sophisticated manufacturing in Australia, and I am proud to represent one of only two national shipbuilding hubs. We might make other artefacts in Australia that are as large as ships, but there are none as complex. In terms of our sovereign manufacturing capacity, our ability to make the things that are most important to us and to be a nation of which it can be said that we are capable of making anything, the significance of our shipbuilding businesses and workforce cannot be overstated. That's why the Albanese government's commitment to a continuous shipbuilding program at Henderson in my electorate is so welcome. That program, which was announced by the Minister for Defence and the Minister for Defence Industry last week, is unprecedented in its scale and duration. It is of course principally focused on meeting our maritime security and humanitarian response needs, by growing our fleet from 11 to 26 vessels and by delivering new vessels sooner than under the plan we inherited. It will guarantee the continuity and, indeed, the growth of shipbuilding expertise and jobs in Western Australia for decades to come. It delivers billions of dollars of new investment that will sustain a manufacturing ecosystem, spanning hundreds of small- and medium-sized businesses.

At present, the Henderson precinct is engaged in building four Arafura class offshore patrol vessels and two Cape class patrol vessels, alongside the work involved in upgrading our Anzac class frigates. We have already brought forward the work for delivering the Army's new landing craft medium and landing craft heavy, which will be undertaken by Birdon and Austal.

As a result of this government's Defence Strategic Review, we're now committed to building eight new frigates as well as six cutting-edge optionally crewed surface vessels. The scale and carefully programmed nature of this work will be the foundation of long-term employment for more than 1,200 Western Australians.

As I suggested earlier, the essential ingredient of our sovereign shipbuilding capacity is our skilled and highly committed maritime workforce. That's why we've already taken key steps to improve education and training opportunities, not least through the provision of 180,000 fee-free TAFE places across Australia. That has already benefitted the education of 19,700 Western Australians.

All this does stand in contrast to the decade that preceded us under the previous government. The fact is that we inherited a fleet in decline, with our Navy being asked to make do with the oldest operational service fleet in Australia since the end of World War II. We're not going to allow that to remain the case. As an island continent, we must have a properly equipped Navy and we must maintain a first-rate standard of sovereign shipbuilding capacity. The Albanese Labor government sees that very clearly, and we're taking action to make sure that the shipbuilding hub at the Australian Marine Complex at Henderson, in my electorate of Fremantle, is secure and growing in its role as a national centre of manufacturing excellence.

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