Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak on this matter of public importance. Let me remind the Senate of the coalition's promise to build 12 submarines in Adelaide. In May last year, the now defence minister stood outside the ASC in Adelaide and said:

… I want to confirm that the 12 submarines as set out in the 2009 Defence White Paper and then again in last Friday’s Defence White Paper are what the Coalition accepts and will deliver.

We will deliver those submarines from right here at ASC in South Australia.

You could not be more unambiguous than that, Mr Acting Deputy President Williams. You could not be more unambiguous than that, other than us noting that you are a Swans fan barracking this weekend. It is clear cut. The South Australian Liberal leader was standing next to Senator Johnston at the time, and this is what he had to say. He said that the state Liberals welcomed the coalition's confirmation that 12 submarines would be built in Adelaide under a coalition government. Confirmation—again, no mis-statements; no confusion; there was confirmation that 12 submarines would be built in Adelaide. No-one is under any illusions about the promise that the coalition made. And no-one is under any illusions that this government is about to break that promise by buying our submarines from overseas.

This puts at risk thousands of jobs in South Australia and across the whole country. It also puts at risk our strategically vital submarine and shipbuilding industry.

But it is not just Labor that has warned about the dangers of this broken promise. Instead of supporting the shipbuilding industry, the minister has spent his time since coming to government trashing it. Quite frankly his behaviour has been disgraceful. He has insulted our shipbuilders, calling the air warfare destroyer, 'a disgraceful mess' of a program and 'a bit of a skunk'. He has also claimed that, when he directed work for two new Navy supply ships overseas, he did not allow an Australian company to even bid for these two supply ships. This is what he said: 'It was beyond the capacity of Australia to produce.' This is a minister and a government that have not seen an Australian shipbuilding job that they do not want to send overseas. On those two supply ships, he said, 'Only the Spanish or only the South Koreans can bid'—no Australians are allowed to bid.

What is the industry view? What is the broader defence view? This is not, as some seek to portray it, industry protectionism; this is about defence capability. There is growing speculation that the government will buy submarines from Japan. Labor are concerned that these submarines are not designed to meet Australia's unique needs for range, endurance and capability. Again, Labor are not the only ones who think this. Retired Rear Admiral Peter Briggs and retired Commodore Terence Roach recently warned the following:

Submarines are not cars—you cannot simply switch to another like disposing of a Holden to buy a Mitsubishi …

They are designed for a specific purpose and unfortunately big compromises would have to be accepted if Australia is to buy Japanese without serious design modifications, incurring further time delays, high cost and risk.

These are serious, serious concerns raised by former senior figures in the defence industry. But it is not just Australian submarine experts warning the government.

Senator O'Sullivan interjecting—

Senator Edwards interjecting—

Let me be clear for those opposite who are interjecting. Labor spent $220 million selecting a process for the new submarines. Japanese submarine experts are issuing warnings also—it is not just Australian submariner experts; it is Japanese.

In question time today, Senator Wong asked a question about comments made by Senator Fawcett in the party room earlier this week that was reported in today's The Advertiser. Senator Fawcett and, it appears, other South Australian senators about to make a contribution claimed that they are going to be happy if Adelaide is able to secure the maintenance work on Australian future submarines, abandoning hope that they will be built in Australia. Those opposite from South Australia have rolled over and given up on the election promise they so cynically made to confuse and mislead voters in South Australia. The very people who voted for South Australian senators were misled before the election.

Senator Wong asked Senator Abetz whether or not this was just the softening up process. We saw it yesterday, we saw it today and we are about to see it again. The coalition are going to abandon South Australian workers. South Australian people are going to be abandoned by this government. This will show a lack of conviction from South Australian senators on this issue and it is very disappointing to watch the South Australian Liberal senators just roll over and go along with breaking a solemn promise.

Those opposite made a big thing about this. They talk about breaching trust. They said: 'We will not tell lies. We'll keep our promises.' That is what they said before the election. Not that long ago South Australia had senators who would stand up for their state, who would stand up for jobs and industry. But it seems those days are over. They could be taking lessons from the National Party in this chamber. But Senator Fawcett's statement reminds us that all South Australian Liberal senators have abandoned their state. I notice that Senator Birmingham was listed to speak on this motion. I do not see him in the chamber; maybe he has been subbed out—no pun intended. I hope that he uses the opportunity, or any replacement for him, to call on this government to keep its promise. That is all we are asking in this chamber—keep your promise that you made to build 12 new submarines in South Australia.

When it comes to the price of Australia's future submarines, there is no doubt that it will be substantial. That is why it is essential we get it right. But all we have at the moment is wild speculation, rumour and innuendo from those opposite. One report the government like to toss around is that it will cost $80 billion. This is a ludicrous figure put out by the government to try to justify why they want to break their promise. So when we are talking about a 40- to 50-year project, and that is what these submarines will entail, we have to get it right. Why can't we just have a fair, open tender process? Anyone can bid. In an open tender process, we get the best price. All of a sudden, those opposite do not want the best price. So I urge those opposite to rise up and stand up for your state. (Time expired)