Ross Vasta (Bonner, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last week I was joined by the shadow minister for defence, the Hon. Andrew Hastie; the member for Bowman, Henry Pike; and 150 locals for the Bonner Bowman Defence Forum. The forum was an opportunity to hear from our shadow defence minister, who shared his clear vision for our defence industry. It was wonderful to hear from such an experienced, educated and decisive leader, who had travelled across the country from Western Australia to the Manly Lota RSL.

Australia is a strong and mighty country. We have bright minds and plentiful natural resources. We are a hopeful, fierce and ready people, so it was incredibly disappointing to see the defence recruiting in such a poor state. On top of needing cheaper groceries, affordable rent and lower bills, Australians expect to feel safe in their homes and communities and as a nation. Our strategic environment is the most challenging and complex it has been since World War II, and we desperately need to fix the recruiting, retention and readiness crisis in our Defence Force.

We need a message that appeals to young hearts and minds, reminding the next generation of the timeless values of service, duty, honour and country. As the shadow defence minister says, a strong and capable sovereign defence industry means a stronger and more capable defence force and, therefore, a stronger and more capable Australia.