Ian Macfarlane (Groom, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to talk about the local gains for our defence forces in the seat of Groom. Last week we saw in the defence white paper a spending increase of some $30 billion. A significant part of that was sent to very important Army bases in my electorate. The Army training centre facilities at Swartz Barracks in Oakey have had an allocation to support the new CH-47F Chinook helicopters and also the MRH-90 troop lift helicopters. That represents an investment of around $30 million over the next decade and a further $300 million in the decade following that.

Mr Deputy Speaker, you, like I, know how important that is to our region and how delighted the community of Oakey and in fact the whole community of Groom were to see that money allocated. As well as Swartz Barracks, we will see an upgrading of facilities at Borneo Barracks at Cabarlah—a very important area in terms of Army intelligence. This represents an investment of around $100 million in the decade to come and about $30 million in the decade after. This shows the coalition's true commitment not only to defence but also to defence in regional areas.