Pat Conroy (Shortland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Defence Industry) | Hansard source

I hear the interjection from one of the 3,000 defence industry ministers the last government had. Defence ministers lasted shorter than goldfish under the last government.

Let's look at the facts for funding. Increases in LAND funding by 34 per cent. Investment in the Air Force increases by 24 per cent. Maritime above the water—so non-submarines—increases by 11 per cent. Investment in GWEO is doubled to $36 billion. We are more than doubling funding for counterdrone defences. Drone manufacturing is up 50 per cent. Missile defence is a 66 per cent increase in funding, including increasing active missile defence by an order of five times. So we're funding not just AUKUS, we're funding air, LAND, sea, missile production, counterdrone production, drone production and missile defence because this government is committed to defending this nation.

Acquisition funding increases in the four years from $21 billion to $27 billion. I heard the member for Herbert talking about sustainment—again, not based in facts. This year we will spend $18.8 billion on sustainment. Over the forward estimates alone, it grows to $24.4 billion, a one-third increase in sustainment funding in four years alone. We're driving the biggest increase in peacetime funding for the defence Force. We're seeing equipment coming with speedy delivery of things like Ghost Shark, the fastest acquisition of a major capability in recent history. The Mogami class is going to be very fast as well. At the same time, we're growing the Australian defence industry. Employment in manufacturing in the Australian defence industry grew by 11 per cent in the last year alone. So we're growing jobs, we're growing capability for the ADF and we're driving the resources that the ADF needs to defend this country.

What we see from the opposition is chest-beating. They're always proud to talk about it, always proud to be in shots with people in uniform, but, when it comes to backing up the ADF with the resources they need to defend this country, they go missing in action just like Bob Menzies always was.

Proposed expenditure agreed to.

Health, Disability and Ageing Portfolio

Proposed expenditure, $64,077,874,000

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