David Leyonhjelm (NSW, Liberal Democratic Party) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Defence, Senator Payne. Some South Australians, especially their elected representatives, claim our submarines should be built in that state. But the Air Warfare Destroyer saga, which delivered production faults and a huge cost overrun and is still to deliver an actual boat, suggests that South Australia should not be trusted to build a canoe. Since their claim is mostly due to the number of marginal seats in South Australia, my question is this: rather than assign responsibility for our submarines to a state with such a dodgy record, why can't we build submarines in Western Sydney, where there are numerous marginal seats, the water is fresh and the people are less parochial?