Angie Bell (Moncrieff, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Defence. Will the minister inform the House of the Morrison government's significant investment in defence capability, and how it's working with regional partners to keep Australia safe and secure? And is the minister aware of any alternative approaches?

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

I thank the honourable member for her question. I want to thank her too for her commitment to the veterans on the Gold Coast, particularly around Anzac Day and days of national significance. It wouldn't come as any surprise that, at least in part, that passion comes from her own family history. We know that the honourable member has two great-uncles who were Rats of Tobruk, so that is an incredible family history and one to be very proud of.

The Morrison government is absolutely proud of the way in which we support our troops and the way in which we provide them with a very significant investment, to make over the course of the next 10 years, of some $270 billion. That is about investing in the equipment that we need to keep Australia safe and that we need to provide the troops with to keep our country safe. It is a record investment. It is now in excess of two per cent of GDP.

That stands in stark contrast to the Labor Party—and I am asked about alternative approaches. The defence budget, under the Labor Party, fell—wait for this—to 1.56 per cent of GDP. It was the lowest level since 1938. We live in a region now, in the Indo-Pacific, which is more uncertain than any time since that time, since the Second World War. We have uncertainty in our region, and we know that, if we were relying on the Labor Party now to provide support, security and safety to our country, they have a track record of taxing and taking money away from the Defence Force. That's the reality. Why would they do that? It is because, as the Australian public understands, when it comes to border protection and defending our nation, the Labor Party, at its heart, in its DNA, is weak. It's weak because, on these issues, it's dragged to the left by its buddies in the Greens. When Labor is in government, it makes decisions that are always against the interests of the Australian Defence Force. In making those decisions, the Labor Party takes money away from our troops and it takes money away that should be invested in keeping our country safe.

It is quite remarkable that our AUKUS construct has come together to keep Australians safe, but our compacts and our friends extend well beyond the United Kingdom and the United States. This is evidenced in ASEAN. At the Australian leaders summit last night—at which our country was represented by the Prime Minister—it was agreed to establish a comprehensive strategic partnership between ASEAN and Australia. This is a first time ASEAN has entered into such an arrangement. We'll continue to work with our close friends to keep our country safe. (Time expired)