Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Smith for the question. This is a really historic announcement and a unique opportunity for jobs and skills right here in Australia. It will create an entirely new workforce sector, driving skills, training and employment opportunities which will benefit the national economy for generations. It's a whole-of-nation effort that will deliver nation-changing opportunities, including around 20,000 direct highly skilled and highly paid jobs, including as technicians, engineers, scientists and project managers. This means jobs right across Australia but also in the good Senator Smith's home state of South Australia and, indeed, Western Australia.

In South Australia, which I had the honour to visit last week, with Senator Wong, this project will mean up to 4,000 workers will be employed to design and build the infrastructure at the submarine construction yard in Osborne—at its peak. A further 4,000 to 5½ thousand direct jobs are expected to be created to build the nuclear powered submarines in South Australia when the program reaches its peak in 20 to 30 years—almost double the workforce that had been forecast for the Attack class program.

In Western Australia, the expansion of HMAS Stirling to support the infrastructure required for nuclear-powered submarines is expected to create around 3,000 direct jobs over the decade. An additional 500 direct jobs are expected to be created to sustain the Submarine Rotational Force—West, over the period 2027 to 2032.

We need to get moving on these investments, investing not just for our national security but in the future of defence and also the future of our economy and the skills and jobs that come with it. This is a big investment, and we've been upfront with the Australian people about the substantial pressures on the budget. Defence is one of the big five fastest-growing areas of spending, along with the NDIS, aged care, health care and the cost of servicing the trillion dollars of Liberal debt. (Time expired)