Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

I respectfully disagree with Mr Costello on this matter, although we have worked together in the past on a number of issues. Let me be very clear about what is in the Defence Export Strategy. It builds on the government's very strong defence industry policies by setting out a comprehensive system to plan, to guide and to measure defence export outcomes. What we are doing is bringing together all the levers that are available to government and to industry to provide end-to-end support for defence exports, from building export readiness to identifying export opportunities, and, ultimately, to realise defence export outcomes. We are also establishing, through the strategy, the Australian Defence Export Office within the Department of Defence, which will provide a focal point for defence exports. The strategy is also creating a Defence Export Advocate, who will support the office by providing ongoing, high-level advocacy for defence exports. They have not yet been appointed but they will be a senior figure with strong knowledge of the Australian defence industry.

So what we have committed to—and I emphasise that this is all structured within the defence trade control system, which already applies strongly to what we do when we observe our obligations under that system—