Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Defence Materiel) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Pratt, thank you very much for the question. Today I announce the preferred tenderer for a new $300 million defence contract. That contract is for the repair and maintenance of the Anzac class frigates. The preferred tenderer is Naval Ship Management Australia, a joint venture between Babcock and United Group Infrastructure. The work will be based out of Perth. This contract is the first of what I trust will be many contracts reflecting a new approach. For too long local suppliers have complained about hand-to-mouth contracts. What we want to do is to provide incentives for long-term investment in Australian-based companies and Australian workers. This is a five-year contract which allows us to judge the performance and allows industry to invest in its own future with confidence. That is a good approach for industry, it is a good approach in terms of jobs, it is a good approach for the Navy and it is good for the taxpayer. This is consistent with the approach that the government is taking in all forms of procurement.

We have long argued that, when it comes to buying Australian, we can simply not get enough. But that does not mean that we should buy Australian at any price or on any terms. What the government emphasises is that we are not in the business of accepting second best. What we argue is that we should reject the assumption that local industry cannot compete in terms of global competitiveness. We reject the notion, and the small-mindedness and fearmongering of those opposite. This is a country that can do great things, and, I think, we can build high-tech, high-wage, high-skilled jobs in Australian manufacturing. We want to ensure that all our people share in the prosperity that they all have a right to expect. (Time expired)