David Fawcett (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is for Senator Reynolds, the Minister for Defence. Minister, could you outline to the Senate the importance to Australia's national security of a submarine capability, and, in that context, the importance of Sea 1000, the Future Submarine project?

Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Fawcett, for the question and for your enduring passion and commitment to this important capability for our nation. The first responsibility of any Australian government is to keep Australia and Australians safe. That's why the Morrison government is investing over $200 billion to deliver the modern Defence Force our nation needs. This government recognises that the security dynamics in our region are deteriorating, and we must invest in Australia's naval capability to address these challenges. Highly capable maritime forces are vital to our defence strategy, and none more than submarines. By 2035, we estimate that we will have over 300 submarines operating in our region.

As a maritime nation, our future prosperity depends on a stable, rules based order and the free flow of goods and services across our region through international sea lines of communication. This government's Australian Naval Shipbuilding Enterprise is unprecedented in both scale and ambition. In Australia, we are simultaneously building five separate classes of new vessels, including the highly complex submarines and frigates. In total, we have commissioned 63 Australian built naval vessels. Six have already been delivered and nine more are currently under construction. For the Hunter class anti-submarine warfare frigates and the Arafura class offshore patrol vessels, we have adopted ambitious but deliverable schedules for design and for construction. Not only has this saved Australian jobs but it is also creating many thousands more for many decades to come.

All Australians have so much to be proud of in this truly national endeavour, and it is time to talk up our nation's achievements and not undermine them. (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Fawcett, a supplementary question.

David Fawcett (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, could you outline the steps the government is taking to keep Project SEA 1000 on schedule?

Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Fawcett. The 2016 Defence white paper stated that the future submarines would likely enter service from the early 2030s. Let me make it very clear to everybody in this chamber, and to all Australians: the future submarine program is on track to meet this time frame.

Our current Collins class submarines are a highly capable and potent national asset. They are halfway through their life and are being constantly upgraded right here in Australia to ensure that they remain regionally superior until the introduction of the Attack class submarines in the early 2030s. The competitive evaluation process that was completed in 2016 allowed this government to make a fully informed decision to build 12 new regionally superior submarines in Australia. That process found that there were no military off-the-shelf submarines internationally that met our very unique requirements. Can I say again: this is being delivered on track and on time.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Fawcett, a final supplementary question.

David Fawcett (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, could you outline to the Senate the steps the government is taking to keep Project SEA 1000 on budget?

Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you. Again, can I be very, very clear about this project to all in this chamber: there is no blow-out to the cost of the future submarine project. There is no cost blow-out to the future submarine project! When we announced the program in April 2016, the estimated cost for acquisition, in 2016 dollars, was $50 billion. There has been no change to this cost in constant-dollar terms.

The Future Submarine Program will run well into the 2050s, and the use of constant dollars allows for a consistent comparison of purchasing power over the life of the project. The deliberate conflation by Labor of constant costs without outturn costs, which take into account inflation and exchange rates, is incredibly misleading and incredibly disappointing for a great Australian project. To put this very simply: comparing constant and outturn dollars does not represent a cost increase— (Time expired)