George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you very much indeed, Senator Xenophon, and thank you for your courtesy in giving me advance notice of this question. I do have some information for you that has been supplied by the Department of Defence.

The Turnbull government's 2016 Defence white paper is the most comprehensive plan for the safety and security of our nation ever. It provides the funding needed to ensure that the Australian Defence Force can keep us and our borders safe both now and well into the future. Over the next decade, the government will invest $195 billion in defence capability. Any cuts to defence funding, such as those, Senator Xenophon, which you have proposed, put at risk our plan to build the defence capability—