David Johnston (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

It is a bit like the NBN. He is an expert—but he really isn't. The Japanese submarine has a reserve buoyancy of 21 per cent. It is double hulled and has three extensive watertight compartments. The Collins class submarine has a reserve buoyancy of about nine per cent—it is right on the edge of safety. The Japanese submarine is a deep-diving submarine. The Japanese submarine travels faster than a Collins. The Japanese submarine is a very good submarine, as is the German submarine, the 214, and as is the Scorpene, the French submarine. Enhanced buoyancy is actually a very positive thing when you are 300 metres below the surface.