Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Manufacturing) Share this | Hansard source

[by video link] Yet again, we have a Morrison government that can't be trusted to tell Australian industry the truth. The latest example, in addition to the naval submarine backflip, is the revelation in Senate estimates that the Pacific support vessels slated to be built in Australia—most likely, in WA—will now be bought second-hand overseas. This is despite WA industry having geared up for the work. These Australian businesses that are ready to do the work are being passed over by their own government, just like industry has been passed over with the dropping of the French Attack class submarines that were to be built here.

Now with the AUKUS submarine announcement, we have another set of soft promises. Where are they going to come from? We know that American shipbuilding yards that are used to manufacture nuclear submarines are operating beyond their capacity. There are no tenders, no time lines, no expressions of interest and, certainly, no contracts. The problem is the same in Britain. The security problems associated with nuclear technology, including transport, mean that it is extremely difficult to see AUKUS submarines actually being built here. We definitely need a solution to both the skills industry in defence and the capability gap that we're about to jump headlong into. We need a solution made in Australia.