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

And, of course, then we have taken the share of GDP for the Defence budget from 1.56 per cent—as I have said, the lowest since 1938—to 1.8 per cent in one budget. Of course, $14 billion was ripped out in the years previous to us coming to power. We have sought to repair that and have a funding envelope that projects Defence forward. These are things that they over there, Mr President, do not understand. We have been assiduously working to repair the damage that they did to Defence.

Opposition senators interjecting—

You can roll your eyes! May I say, Mr President, Senate estimates has become just a doddle for the shadow minister. There was not a single bit of pressure put on the department. I really think that, if none of us had turned up, it might have been more fruitful than wasting a day with the senator over there. The fact is: Defence is back on the road after being devastated by you. I do not want to take the credit for it, but we over here take the credit for it, because we are a government that knows what good government looks like.