Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

I can provide that detail, because it is an area of defence which was sorely neglected under the previous government. We are going to invest in our maritime capabilities with the most comprehensive regeneration of our Navy literally since the Second World War. In that process—and a number of these have clearly been announced in advance and are part of the white paper today—it includes our nine new antisubmarine warfare frigates, with construction to start in 2020. Those frigates are going to have a range and endurance to operate throughout maritime South-East Asia and be deployable from forward bases such as in the Middle East.

In air capability, we will acquire seven additional P8A Poseidon maritime surveillance and response aircraft, bringing that total to 15, significantly enhancing our maritime surveillance and response capability. In fact, I only recently—earlier this week—referred to that capability in relation to the P3s and the tragic events in Fiji. (Time expired)