Steve Georganas (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'd like to commence with some remarks on the motion moved by the member for Fisher by joining him in paying tribute, as he did at the end of the motion, to Senator Jim Molan AO, DSC. As members will be aware, Senator Molan had a long and distinguished military career, serving in the Australian Army for more than 40 years and reaching the rank of Major General. He served in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, East Timor, Malaysia, Germany, the United States and Iraq. He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia. Senator Molan was a great Australian, and may he rest in peace.

We live in a world where nations seek to increase their access to resources and capital. There's nothing wrong with that; all nations want to increase their resources and their capital, but some of the nations that were mentioned earlier by the member for Fisher are looking to do so doing in an illegal way and through immoral means. We only have to observe recent events in Ukraine to see the devastating impact this can have on a population that has been invaded. Even though there is an embargo on Russia, we know and we can see how they're still getting some of their products out illegally through some of these rogue nations, including Iran and a whole range of others. This is something that's really worrying the EU at the moment.

There is an enormous impact on a population that has been invaded. Even though, in World War II, we were never invaded, we came incredibly close to it in your neck of the words, in the Northern Territory, Deputy Speaker Scrymgour. We know that Darwin was bombed and that there was a real enemy on our shores. We have to do everything we can to stop invasions, like Russia's invasion of Ukraine and other invasions that we've seen around the world. We have to ensure that such illegal and inappropriate things do not happen.

Sadly, this is not a new phenomenon, as I said. Last month I attended a commemorative service in Cyprus for the 50th anniversary of the illegal Turkish invasion in Cyprus. This illegal invasion is still a tremendous source of pain for so many people. Even after 50 years, there are still 40,000 foreign troops on the soil of a sovereign country. Certainly, Turkiye has to work out which side of the fence it's on. I know they're members of NATO, but, at the same time, they're getting extremely close with the nations that the member for Fisher mentioned—Russia, Iran and many other nations.

As the National Defence Strategy released in April 2024 confirms, we confront the most challenging strategic circumstances since the Second World War, and we do so at a time when Australia's economic connection to the world has never been greater. We need to develop a more integrated and focused Australian Defence Force so we can defend Australia and our immediate region, protect our economic connection to the world and contribute with our partners to regional security and stability. Australia's acquisition of conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines, through the AUKUS agreement, is fundamental to this. It will ensure we have a defence force with a much greater capacity to deter a potential adversary's attempts to project power against Australia.

Our government is absolutely committed to securing a strong and safe future for all Australians. When we came to government, Australians were more vulnerable to cyberattacks than citizens of any other developed country. Too many Australian citizens and businesses were left out in the cold by the former coalition government, which had fallen asleep at the wheel on cybersecurity. We know this complacency opened the door for attacks that have compromised the data of millions of Australians and left Australia years behind where we should be in cybersecurity.

So this Albanese Labor government is doing the hard work in cybersecurity that should have started a decade ago. We now have a dedicated Minister for Cyber Security in cabinet and have appointed Australia's first National Cyber Security Coordinator. Working with industry and the community, the Albanese government's 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy sets out how we're making Australia a harder target, how we'll help Australians bounce back from cyberattacks and how we're fighting back against cybercriminals. I know no country can reduce cyberattack risks to zero, but these changes will significantly strengthen Australia's cyber defences.

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