Annette Hurley (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Public Works Committee yesterday brought down its report recommending proposed works at the RAAF Base Edinburgh stage 2. The development of the Edinburgh base will enable the 7RAR mechanised battalion to relocate to Adelaide and will upgrade facilities for the RAAF. This work is very important for South Australia—the northern suburbs in particular. I have a very particular interest in this site, because for nearly 12 years I lived a block or so from the air base. For part of that time I was also the state parliament member for the area, and I was very well aware of the benefits of having the defence forces based there. A couple of years ago I also had the privilege of participating in the Defence Force program that allowed me to do a tour in one of the Orions that are based at Edinburgh and which happened to have a navigator who had been a close neighbour of mine.

The Defence Force plans will not only benefit the northern suburbs of Adelaide, with the Edinburgh redevelopment and the associated defence housing; they will also support the associated development at the Cultana Training Range between Whyalla and Port Augusta. Although that area of South Australia is doing very well in terms of employment and growth at the moment with the mining sector developing, it will still be a welcome development to have that defence establishment there. The federal and state governments are not just working towards upgrading physical infrastructure but also putting effort and resources into building skills with the defence industry sector.

In December last year, the Rudd government announced a $61 million investment in defence industry skilling, and South Australia will benefit from a significant proportion of that funding. I believe this skilling is an important and essential part of South Australia’s involvement in defence projects and it also contributes to the impressive pool of expertise that already exists in South Australia. Apart from the engineers and technicians that work at RAAF Base Edinburgh, the Collins class submarine employs a great many engineers and technicians. We also have an associated facility, the DSTO, out in the northern suburbs, which has tremendous expertise in signals communications and other defence related technical areas. It is a great employer of scientists and engineers from South Australia.

The $61 million announced by the Rudd government enables that pool of skilled people to increase and relates to a number of programs. Up to $6 million will be available to establish the South Australian Advanced Technology Schools Pathway program, which will provide career pathways to the defence industries for young people in South Australia. There is also $5.9 million for the professional doctorates program in systems engineering. This program will ensure PhD candidates receive the most up-to-date coursework and research in systems engineering and ensure that they have a clear appreciation of its application to the defence industry and the military. The first round of scholarships for this program will be offered nationally early in 2010. Another $6 million will be invested to establish the masters program in systems support engineering, which will equip senior engineering and project managers with the knowledge and understanding to deliver integrated support solutions. An Adelaide based company, BAE Systems, will coordinate the development of the course with RMIT and with substantial input from the University of South Australia, Saab and the ASC.

The final prong of this funding will be $2.5 million invested with the University of South Australia to convert its existing masters of military systems integration to a flexible delivery mode. Again, this was developed in partnership with a number of bodies: the University of South Australia and three defence industry companies, BEA Systems, Saab and ASC. As I said, we already have an impressive pool of talent and we look forward to improving that pool of talent with the benefit of the funding that has been provided by this program. South Australia has a number of very impressive educational facilities and I know that there is a concerted effort by schools and facilities, including in the northern suburbs, to tie in with these defence industry related programs. It is part of a resurgence in the northern suburbs in providing jobs and skills for people in the area.

The defence contribution to the South Australian economy is enormously important for South Australia and for the northern suburbs in particular. It has been something that has been worked on by the South Australian government very assiduously. They have been very strong in negotiating and in pushing their case with the federal government and the defence industry generally about the skills base that we have in South Australia and the potential to develop that even further.

A part of that push for recognition of South Australia as a state of excellence in the defence industry and defence generally has been the formation of the Defence SA Advisory Board. The defence board advises the South Australian government about defence matters and is chaired by General Peter Cosgrove. In March this year, Professor Kim Beazley, who has a well-known interest and expertise in defence matters, joined the board and that was welcomed by the South Australian government. There are a number of eminent people on the board, including South Australians Mr Andrew Fletcher, who is chief executive of Defence South Australia, and Mr Malcolm Kinnaird, who is a leading South Australian businessman in the area of engineering. Emeritus Professor Paul Dibb is an adviser to the board on strategic policy matters. This has been a matter of great strategic importance to the South Australian government and South Australia is benefiting substantially from the involvement of the defence forces in the South Australian economy. South Australians everywhere welcome that involvement and look forward to an increased involvement by the defence forces.