Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I also want to rise to make a contribution to Senator Van's matter of public importance here in the Senate, particularly about the work that the Albanese Labor government is undertaking to deliver Australia's inaugural National Defence Strategy. I also wanted to note Senator Van's strong interest and commend him for his support of our ADF. I know he has a very strong interest and has, on many occasions now with the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee, spent some time in estimates and other forums supporting our troops on the ground. I just wanted to commend him on that.

The Albanese Labor government regards the safety of Australians as its highest duty, and this includes defending our country, deterring potential threats and protecting Australia's economic connection to the world. Sadly, what we hear from the Australian Greens is the complete opposite, and not one of them is in the chamber at the moment to make a very useful contribution about how we, as a nation and as a parliament, do our duty in protecting our citizens.

Therefore I'm also very glad that this MPI has been placed on the agenda today, because federal Labor is serious about investing record amounts in defence industry to equip the men and women of the ADF with more advanced platforms, in greater numbers, sooner. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in the first year of the Albanese government, in 2022-23, Australian defence industry rose by 4.1 per cent and contributed $10.6 billion to our economy. Thanks to the government's increased spending, the number of people employed in defence industry also grew strongly by around six per cent. Increasing our military capability is imperative now more than ever, and we're boosting defence in a speedy manner, with projects starting this decade.

Central to a well-equipped ADF was the introduction of the Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise last year. In that short time, the government signed a $37.4 million contract with Lockheed Martin to manufacture missiles in Australia from next year, invested $220 million in Commonwealth owned munitions production factories, committed $1.6 billion to expand and accelerate the acquisition of long-range rocket systems for Army, committed $1.3 billion to provide Tomahawk cruise missiles for the Navy, and successfully integrated the latest naval strike missile and Standard Missile 6 on Navy warships. The government will also invest a total $16 billion to $21 billion over the decade to establish munitions manufacturing in Australia—and that means local jobs.

It's important to note that this government is taking decisive action to repair the damage of a decade of neglect by those opposite. The government has signed the single largest defence export agreement in Australia's history, exporting over 100 Boxer vehicles valued at $3.1 billion—and securing over 600 direct jobs. I know my colleague Senator Chisholm would be very happy with that result, given that he comes from Queensland. There will be many jobs in Queensland that will benefit from that—as well as those in my home state of Victoria—through the supply chain.

Looking ahead, federal Labor has also fast tracked the delivery of the first new infantry fighting vehicle, the Redback IFV, to 2027. Under the coalition, that first vehicle was not scheduled until late 2029. Under Labor, all 129 locally built Redback IFVs will be delivered by the time the first vehicle would have been delivered under those opposite. The Albanese government is also accelerating the delivery of new surface combatants to the Navy. The first of these frigates will also be in service by 2029, followed by the first Hunter class frigate in 2034. In stark contrast, those opposite proposed that the Navy had to wait until 2034 for its first new major combatant vessel.

In the undersea domain, federal Labor will deliver a Virginia class nuclear-powered submarine in the early 2030s. Those opposite had no plans to deliver any new submarines until the late 2030s. Last month, the government brought forward by two years the delivery of 18 medium landing craft for the Army. They arrive from 2026. This will create 1,100 direct jobs and more than 2,000 indirect jobs under a program that will also deliver eight heavy landing craft, seven years earlier, from the mid-2030s. We've also announced investment into Australian industry to further develop the Ghost Bat, the first military aircraft designed and manufactured in Australia for more than 50 years.

There is so much that this government has done. I'm so proud of the work that the Albanese government is doing to support our ADF men and women.