Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this matter of public importance. I think that it is absolutely ridiculous that the opposition is so out of touch and so out of sync with the Australian community and the issues that are facing the country that it has nothing to offer except for distractions like this so-called MPI. They are trying to give themselves some relevance.

I agree with the Assistant Minister for Defence. He says that you cannot trust Labor, and I agree with him. You cannot trust Labor. Labor do not give a 'ship' about defence. Labor did not give one ship in six years. It is absolutely disgraceful. Meanwhile, the coalition continues to do its best to turn around the mess of six years of Labor. Every single day the Turnbull government is out there growing the economy, developing the foundations of the country for the future, crafting the building blocks that will drive growth and prosperity for every Australian man, woman and child for the generations to come. More than $1 billion into innovation; about $70 billion into schools; $54 billion into higher education; $13 billion into skills; $9 billion into science and research. That is the story of this government, which is committed to getting the country back on track and stabilising the future.

We saw another example of that today with the release of the 2016 Defence white paper. While the members opposite sat there whingeing and carping, this government has released a generational plan, a comprehensive and responsible long-term blueprint that will safeguard Australia's national security and will bring with it considerable economic, educational and innovative spin-offs that will drive growth, prosperity and jobs as well.

Mr McCormack interjecting—

That is exactly right, Assistant Minister. For my electorate of Solomon, the white paper is a mighty document. This represents decades of government expenditure—billions of dollars in the area of defence alone. It will mean education and training opportunities for kids in Darwin and Palmerston and indeed the rest of the Northern Territory. It will be a bulwark for small business and, as they plan for the future, it will be jobs for mums and dads.

With a time limit of only five minutes, I will not be able to outline all the benefits that the Northern Territory will receive, but I would like to put on record a few. We are going to get around $70 million of additional investment which will be spent updating facilities at Robertson Barracks near my home town of Palmerston in the next 10 years. In the decade of 2025 to 2036, additional investment of up to $800 million will be made for facilities at Robertson Barracks. Around $1.2 billion will be invested in infrastructure upgrades at HMAS Coonawarra and Larrakeyah Barracks in the decade 2025 to 2036, with an additional investment of around $2.1 billion towards future long-term facilities and requirements in the decade between 2025 and 2036. There will be investments of around $200 million for airfields and facilities at RAAF Base Darwin over the decade 2025 to 2036. There will be around $5.6 billion invested in the decade between 2025 and 2036 to enhance air base capacity in the Northern Territory. There will be significant investments in new infrastructure and facilities over the next 10 years to support the ADF's strike and air combat capabilities. This includes upgrades to RAAF Base Tindal to support the introduction of the Joint Strike Fighter. Bradshaw Field Training Area will be upgraded to support our land force capabilities, representing an investment of around $20 million in the next 10 years and a further $350 million in the following decade.

Defence information networks will be upgraded to provide the capability to store, manage and process large amounts of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data. Intelligence capability enhancements will support existing intelligence capabilities based in the territory. This government will also upgrade and enhance the Jindalee Operational Radar Network over the next two decades, including facilities near Alice Springs.

This is just a snapshot of how the Northern Territory will benefit from the defence white paper plan that we announced today. It is small to medium enterprises like RGM in Holtze, just out of Palmerston and only 15 minutes out of Darwin's CBD, that will stand to benefit from Australia's defence security plan. This is how the Turnbull Government is going to continue to build the Australian economy, despite the efforts of those opposite.

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