Andrew Hastie (Canning, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) the 2020 Defence Strategic Update makes clear that Australia's strategic environment has deteriorated rapidly;

(b) as a result of decisions taken by the former Government, substantial progress has been made in transforming the Australian Defence Force into a more capable, agile, and potent force able to shape, deter, and respond; and

(c) the Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) security pact:

(i) is the biggest development to our national security since the signing of the Australia-New Zealand-United States (ANZUS) treaty 70 years ago;

(ii) will maintain stability across the region and keep Australians secure through the acquisition of capabilities, including nuclear submarines, which will be crucial to Australian naval and defence power in the 21st century; and

(iii) goes beyond submarines and critical defence capabilities, it is about nation-building; and

(2) calls on the Government to:

(a) ensure that spending on defence remains at two per cent of gross domestic product, or higher;

(b) guarantee that there will be no cuts to spending on defence, or defence projects as a result of the Government's promised 'Force Posture review'; and

(c) commit to implementing AUKUS rapidly at all levels to ensure Australia's security and regional peace are strengthened.

I rise to address this enduring question: how do we keep Australia safe? We've always had geography on our side, and, until recently, we've had time on our side as well. Culturally, we've seen ourselves as the lucky country. That era is over.

Australia's strategic environment has degraded rapidly, and it continues to degrade as tensions in the Indo-Pacific mount. Whether in our region or in eastern Europe, authoritarian powers are on the move. China is undergoing the largest peacetime military build-up since the Second World War. Russia has launched an unprovoked and unjust war on the Ukrainian people. This has strategic, economic and social implications, and they are all connected. Indeed, this era requires considered political leadership and statecraft. We need it now. Time is no longer on our side, but time remains of the essence. Now enters the member for Herbert! Knowing this hard truth inspires action, and we have reason to act. There is much about Australia to preserve and protect: the values and the principles that govern our citizens and our nation, freedom, the rule of law and our liberal democracy, which is one of the oldest in the world.

Peace is the cornerstone of prosperity and security, and we know its price. Over the past century, more than 100,000 fallen Australians have paid that price with their lives. Cenotaphs across this country remind us of this truth. Right now, our nation faces many challenges: fiscal pressures, the aftermath of the pandemic, cost-of-living strains, the widening pain of inflation and other economic headwinds. With these challenges, we can be distracted from defending freedom and peace, and we can hope that everything will work out okay, but, as authoritarian powers build up and ruthlessly deploy their militaries, we must not forget that weakness is provocative and that, in standing for our values, we must stand strong.

Standing strong means a commitment to hard power. It means being ready for tomorrow's threats and it means speed—speed to acquisition and speed to the battlefield. It means deterrence: making an adversary think twice before threatening us. It means strike—long range, accurate and lethal. It means asymmetric thinking and approaches: how can we overmatch our natural strengths against an adversary's vulnerabilities? It means having a sense of urgency and a bias for action. Standing strong also means growing our greatest asset, our people. We need a whole-of-nation orientation to the strategic challenges before us. The ADF and our defence establishment must lead, but it will be a shared contribution by all Australians. We must stand, we must stand strong and we must stand together. That's how Australia has always done it—working together, sharing the burden and lending the hand. It's how we'll get it done again. And politics is no exception—this is a bipartisan challenge that calls for collegiate solutions.

We all want the government to succeed in keeping Australia safe, and we want the Defence Strategic Review to build on the work that the former coalition government has done to date. Sir Angus Houston and Professor Stephen Smith have an ambitious task ahead, made more difficult by the sense of urgency it requires. We want them to succeed. That's our commitment to standing together. We want the review to bring together fresh perspectives to hard questions and to lead to the best outcomes. We must not go backward, and, in fact, making the tough calls is the only way forward. So, at the very least, the DSR should guarantee no cuts to Defence. The government should ensure that spending stays higher than two per cent of GDP. This is an imperative, given the inflationary impact on our purchasing power. We must commit to spending what we need to spend. We must have a floor, not a ceiling, and we must be able to increase expenditure as and when required.

Another way in which we stand together is through the AUKUS security pact. AUKUS represents important and timely teamwork with some of our closest and oldest friends. It includes, but goes well beyond, nuclear powered submarines. It's about other strategically significant capabilities like hypersonic missiles and long-range strike; quantum and artificial intelligence; cyber-resilience; and electronic warfare. It will also mean nation building for the task—generational investment in education and technology, and facilitating the movement of people between our three countries. And so it's right to call on the government to rapidly build the framework of AUKUS at all levels. It has to be done; inaction and failure are not an option. It will require singular focus and determination. We will do our job by supporting government in advancing this national cause, but we will also hold them to account should they falter.

Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Phillip Thompson (Herbert, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Fiona Phillips (Gilmore, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I welcome the opportunity to talk about some of the great work our local Defence Force and the defence industry are doing on the New South Wales South Coast. My electorate is home to the only Navy air station, HMAS Albatross. Jervis Bay is also home to HMAS Creswell, the Royal Australian Naval College. Defence and the defence industry are our biggest employers, and we are proud of the amazing things they do for our community and our country.

The 2020 Defence strategic update identified that our national security landscape was changing more rapidly than predicted, so we need to make sure that our Defence Force remains positioned to meet these challenges. That's why the Albanese government has announced the Defence Strategic Review to examine the force structure, posture and preparedness, as well as our investment prioritisation, to ensure that we have the right capabilities to meet our growing strategic needs. I welcome this review. It's a positive step forward in recognising that changes may be needed to how we support our Defence Force.

I'm proud to say that, as a Navy town, our community is already starting to see shifting needs in defence and is pivoting to make it happen. Last week, I took a tour of Air Affairs, Australia's advanced manufacturing centre and aerospace training services facility, in south Nowra. The Shoalhaven has a significant defence industry, and Air Affairs is a world-leading specialist in manufacturing and training, with a focus on Navy. Air Affairs products are in demand globally, and, prior to COVID, exports made up 70 per cent of its business. I'm told that this is because much of the equipment that Australian Defence sourced was imported. In a great example of the holes we had in our defence strategy: when COVID hit, those supply chains were interrupted or destroyed. We didn't have much of the critical equipment needed. In an impressive pivot, Air Affairs, among others, was there as a recognised and proven defence industry manufacturer, and now 90 per cent of its products are sold domestically. This is not because exports have dropped off but because domestic demand has skyrocketed. With one look at their amazing facility, it isn't hard to see why. In the words of Darren, who showed me around, Air Affairs is making manufacturing sexy again, with clean manufacturing, local apprentices and local jobs supplying our local Navy base. What could be better?

Air Affairs has apprentices at every level across all trades—manufacturing, processing, electrical and painting—mostly with graduates from local schools. They provide a one-stop shop for defence products, using automation to complement their workers, including with 3D printers and some of the most complex machinery you've ever seen, overseen by all levels of mechanical engineers. As a former TAFE teacher myself, I found that what impressed me the most was their drive to recruit and train local young people from high school all the way through, showing them they can have a good career right there at home. While I was there, I met Ross, a mechanical engineer, who was originally in the automotive industry. Now he trains four or five apprentices at a time in hand and eye precision. It was great to see the work Ross and all the workers there were doing to help equip our Defence Force for the future.

On top of this, I also had a look at the aerospace training services facility. Air Affairs has just secured a five-year contract to train all HMAS Albatross's Romeo helicopter avionics crew men and women. After finishing with HMAS Cerberus, they come from around Australia to Nowra for 18 months to complete their training based at Albatross. The training centre embeds Navy officers with them and allows them to train on replicas of the equipment they will be using. With the proximity to Albatross, it helps to really prepare these young people for long careers in our Defence Force. They come out with a Certificate IV in Aeroskills, and Air Affairs is excited to provide the next generation of Navy crew with the skills they will need for our future. It's truly fantastic stuff. Thank you to Chris, Darren and Kate for showing me around, and thank you for the fabulous work you are doing supporting our Defence Force.

We need more of this: local jobs, local training, local equipment. This is what we need. The Defence Strategic Review will be the most significant review of our Defence Force we've seen in decades. We need to be prepared for the future, and I am excited that the Shoalhaven is front and centre in leading and supporting that future.

Phillip Thompson (Herbert, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to echo the words of the member for Canning and congratulate him on his appointment to the important position of shadow minister of defence. He has done a great job, and that is demonstrated through his contribution just before.

What this motion is saying is absolutely critical to the future of our country. We live in a time of great uncertainty, unlike any we've seen. To be prepared for the unthinkable, we need to continue our investment in our nation's defence. We must continue to build on the work of the former government with AUKUS, and we must commit to building capability and strong defence spending. That means we must not see cuts to defence.

The Labor government announced its strategic review last month and appointed former defence minister Stephen-Smith and former CDF Sir Angus Houston to run it. It's not a bad thing to take stock and ensure that our structure and posture are appropriate for the times in which we operate, but I have concerns about appointing the former Labor defence minister, who presided over the period when defence spending was cut to its lowest levels since 1938. It is extremely concerning. Past behaviour is the best predictor of future behaviour. Of course, we'll hear the Labor government saying: 'We're not cutting defence. It's not going to happen. We're not going to cut any spending.' But, just over a week ago, we had the first example of the Labor government using the review to disguise capability cuts in a bid to save money, and it has many in the Defence community worried.

Just a week ago, the defence minister said the previous government's commitment to replace the underperforming MRH-90 with the tried and tested Black Hawk was fuzzy and that a process was underway to evaluate the capability. This was the same day the US approved the sale of 40 Black Hawks to Australia, hardly the result of a fuzzy commitment. The decision to replace the MRH-90 with the Black Hawk was well overdue. There had been nine incidents where the MRH-90 Taipan was unsuitable to fly. Defence has spent $37 million to hire civilian helicopters to maintain capability because they were grounded.

But where do the minister's comments leave us? They leave us with uncertainty. They leave us questioning what's happening with MRH-90? What's going to happen with the Black Hawk? We are now wondering, will the Labor government now dump the Black Hawk deal? Our soldiers need a reliable, tactical, troop transport helicopter now, which can be used for training, humanitarian missions and on combat operations. That helicopter is the Black Hawk.

This would also leave our community of Townsville in the lurch. As the current operating base for the MRH-90, the 5th Aviation Regiment would most likely be the base for new Black Hawks, but now the hardworking men and women there who have had to endure the MRH-90 with all its faults and failings don't know what the future holds. As far as they're concerned, they will be continuing to operate that aircraft for longer than they'd hoped. Since the minister's comments, the negative reaction to this decision has been quite significant. I've received e-mails, texts, and messages on Facebook wondering what will be happening with the MRH-90, and if the Black Hawk will be coming into service. Not to mention that, if another platform is chosen, there could be negative implications for jobs and skills capability at that base. The Townsville defence community was critical in backing the push for the decision to be made in the first place. Now we have people working in the 5th Aviation Regiment facing more uncertainty about their future and operating a helicopter that isn't doing the job it's meant for.

If this debacle is anything to go by, it's not just the Black Hawk that we should be worried about being on the chopping block with this review—what about the deal to scrap the Tiger for the Apache? Could it be the nuclear subs next? The coalition government returned defence spending to more than two per cent of GDP, including investing more than $270 billion in defence capability. We must continue this trajectory and ensure we do not see cuts to defence spending.

Peter Khalil (Wills, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Canning for bringing this critical issue to the House today and to this chamber. We might be on different sides in this place, but when it comes to defence and national security we're on the same side—the side of our nation, the Australian side. I look forward to continuing to work with the member for Canning and other members, such as the member for Fremantle, who have been announced alongside me on the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security today in the House. I look forward to working with them on the oversight of our intelligence and security agencies to advance the national interest in a spirit of bipartisanship.

That spirit of bipartisanship is so important. While we can disagree on a number of issues, Australians rightly expect that when it comes to keeping them safe we will put our political differences aside and get the job done. But that does not mean the decisions of the past government are above reproach. We may be on the same page when it comes to defence and national security priorities, but the execution of those priorities by the Morrison government left a lot to be desired. With respect to the AUKUS security pact, I can agree with the member for Canning's motion to the extent that AUKUS is the biggest development for our national security since the ANZUS treaty some 70 years ago, that it goes beyond submarines and into critical defence capability, and that is also about nation building. It will be vital to maintaining stability in our region and crucial to our naval and defence capabilities this century. But therein lies the issue—this century.

When it came to fireproofing our defence capability, there was a complete lack of comprehensive strategic oversight by the other mob—the previous government. The nuclear-powered submarines acquired under the AUKUS agreement are unlikely to hit the water until 2040 at the earliest, probably in the mid-2040s. The previous government's cancellation of the French and before that the Japanese submarine acquisitions effectively left us facing a significant capability gap. Given the volatile geostrategic circumstances we face, it is vital to Australia's national security that we have a submarine capability with an increased endurance, transit speed and stealth capability. Australia's national security is now vulnerable because successive governments have botched it.

The defence capability gap is compounded by the lack of self-reliance in defence industry, leaving us exposed in the most unpredictable and volatile geostrategic period since World War II. There's plenty of debate and analysis about the contract cancellations, but I think the assessment of the former Prime Minister and his government's failings is rightly scathing. Through sheer incompetence, we had the unprecedented situation whereby the leader of one our most important allies and a major power in our region labelled our own Prime Minister a liar. The Australian people deserve better in their representation on the world stage, and, of course, they voted for better in May this year. Already, Prime Minister Albanese has sought to reset our relationships not just with the French president but also with many other world leaders, and started to repair the damage that had been done previously.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles, as Minister for Defence, is acutely aware of the urgent need to improve our defence capability in the short term. He's tasked former defence minister Stephen Smith and former Chief of the Defence Force Angus Houston to conduct the most ambitious review of the Defence Force in decades. This will include an examination of force structure, posture and preparedness, and the prioritisation of investment to improve our capability. This will identify challenges and opportunities over the next decade and beyond as we work to rapidly implement AUKUS and improve our defence posture.

The Albanese government is committed to this. It's in our national interest. It's not about politics. It's about making sure that we preserve the stability in our region, the security in our region that has served us so well, and the prosperity that flows from that as we keep Australians safe. That's what we're about; we don't want to play political games with this. We are focused entirely on the national interest, as we should be, and every government of Australia should be focused on the national interest.

There are many good parts of this motion by the member for Canning, and we support them, but the point that it is very important to make is that this should be above politics; it should be above partisan politics. It should be about a focus on what is best for Australia and on keeping Australia safe and secure in the coming decade.

Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Manufacturing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of this motion. The coalition has called on the government to guarantee that the Defence Strategic Review will not lead to cuts in defence spending and programs. I'm deeply concerned by reports that the Prime Minister and the Minister for Defence's review could lead to defence acquisitions being cut. This is a worrying return to a Labor government which, when last in power, cut defence spending to its lowest levels since 1938.

Another matter of concern is the appointment of a former defence minister, the former member for Perth, to lead the review. The Prime Minister has said this is the most complex strategic environment Australia has encountered, but what does he do? The Prime Minister appoints the man who oversaw the largest cuts to defence in 70 years to review defence investment. He presided over $5.5 billion in cuts in the 2012 budget alone. It was at this time that we saw defence spending as a percentage of GDP drop to 1.6 per cent, in 2013.

These cuts were felt in a very real way by serving men and women, and were a huge hit to our capability. Defence personnel who were around during the years when the former member for Perth was the defence minister are asking if this review means more cuts to vital equipment and even if their jobs could be on the line. I hope that this review will take into consideration the perspectives of everyone from the diggers through to the officers. What the Australian Defence Force needs now is capability, not more reviews and cuts. Labor must guarantee that they will not use this review as a smokescreen for cuts and delays.

By contrast, the coalition government increased defence spending to two per cent of GDP. We invested more than $270 billion in Australia's defence capability. The former coalition government embarked on the most significant national naval shipbuilding enterprise since World War II. We set the course for the delivery of nuclear submarines. We delivered the Australia, United Kingdom and United States security pact, otherwise known as AUKUS. AUKUS is the biggest development to our national security since the signing of the ANZUS Treaty over 70 years ago. This security pact will maintain stability across the region and keep Australians secure through the acquisition of capabilities which are crucial to Australian naval and defence power in the future.

The former coalition government made substantial progress in transforming the Australian Defence Force into a more capable, agile and potent force to deter and respond to threats. AUKUS goes beyond submarines and critical defence capabilities. Since 2016, the ADF has recognised the need to invest in new bases, particularly in northern Australia. The driver of the change identified in 2016 has accelerated faster than anticipated.

As host of most major international training exercises, Central Queensland can also become a permanent host location for Singapore Armed Forces, US military and British Army rotations. The Central Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils recommend that CQ offers new basing opportunities that can enable the ADF to better shape, deter and respond to emerging threats in our region. Capricornia is home to Shoalwater Bay Training Area and is already a major contributor to the ADF's current capabilities.

I support the following recommendations by CQROC. The first is to relocate the Army's 7th Brigade from the Gallipoli Barracks in Brisbane to the Shoalwater Training Area. Once on the outskirts of Brisbane, the Gallipoli Barracks are now surrounded and constrained by suburbia, dislocating Army personnel and their families from the brigade's primary training area. To help ensure the Army's 7th Brigade is ready for future threats, relocating it to a new base adjacent to its primary training area could assist. I also support the recommendation to establish a permanent RAAF presence in Rocky. This will also allow the ADF to leverage aviation deep-maintenance facilities currently being developed by Alliance Airlines, which was also supported financially by the coalition government in a project I fought hard for. Rockhampton Airport is the ideal location for a new east coast base due to its long runway and available land for development. The final recommendation I support is to establish a new school of armour in the Shoalwater Bay Training Area. It would support significant growth in the Army's training requirements for new armoured vehicles.

Australia's strategic environment is rapidly changing, and our military posture needs to change with it. The 2020 Defence Strategic Update makes it clear that Australia's strategic environment has declined rapidly. We are in a period of uncertainty, the likes of which we have not seen for a long time, and the last thing we need is a repeat of the cuts we saw under Labor during the former member for Perth's time as defence minister.

Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Canning, the opposition defence spokesman, for this motion. As my colleague the member for Wills said before, it's pretty important that we have this defence review, a strategic one, to look at our capability, our circumstances, our force posture and what it is that we want the ADF and some of our other agencies to be able to do. As the Prime Minister has said:

It is incumbent on us … To take stock of the billions of dollars in defence investment programs, many of which are over-budget and delayed.

This is not a time for delay

A shining example of the coalition's track record can be seen in its botched handling of the Hunter class frigate procurement process, which is now facing major delays and soaring cost issues thanks to undefined equipment capability. Those opposite have mismanaged every step of the replacement of the Collins class submarine, a pretty important strategic capability. As a refresher, I note that the former Prime Minister and member for Wentworth signed a contract to buy 12 French Barracuda class submarines, but the terms of the contract were poorly defined to say the least. There's a bit of a trend here. The Australian taxpayer ended up forking out $3.5 billion to France before the contract was clumsily terminated. That's a lot of Black Hawks, which the member for Herbert was just speaking about. Who could forget the damage done to Australia's relationship with France, an important strategic partner in the Pacific, which led to the French President, Emmanuel Macron, stating baldly that the former Prime Minister, the member for Cook, had lied to him? It was a devastating blow for that relationship and for cooperation in the Pacific, but the honourable member needn't worry, because we've got those relationships back on track. The Deputy Prime Minister, on last week's visit to Europe, contributed to getting things back on track with the French but also established really good and important strategic relationships with the Germans and many others.

The delivery of the Boxer combat reconnaissance vehicles is going to be delayed by another year, apparently, and that comes on the heels of a seven-month delay of the first Boxer delivery. Similar and serious delays have been forecast for the acquisition of the Arafura class patrol boats. Those opposite want to claim that, whilst in power, they made the ADF more agile, capable and nimble. Unfortunately, I didn't get here in time for the member for Canning's contribution, so I didn't get to hear the evidence that that's the case, but I look forward to having a listen later on.

The 1987 defence white paper established a strategic setting for this country for 35 years. Core to that was that we would have 10 years of warning. With the recent Defence Strategic Update, we know that we're well within that 10-year window, so we need a much greater sense of urgency, and I don't see that coming from the department. I know the defence minister will be working on that.

There's so much more work to be done to prepare for any potential future conflict in the coming years. Over the next month or so, we're going to have 14,500 troops from about 17 different countries training across the Top End. There will be fighters in the air, navies from all around the world operating in our seas and armies operating across the north. We're doing that for a reason, and a very important reason.

For those listening, don't forget that those opposite leased our port in Darwin for 99 years to a company strongly connected with the Chinese communist government. Never let them forget that. Honourable members will remember that their trade minister then took a job with that Chinese company. Everyone will remember that. Australians always ask me about it, wherever I go. In fact, an employee of that company recently belled the cat by saying on radio in the last couple of weeks—I couldn't believe my ears— (Time expired)

Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.