Linda Reynolds (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

Like so many of these important issues, context is absolutely critical. It is absolutely critical, because this government is creating over 15,000 direct jobs in our naval shipbuilding industry. We will make all of these decisions, every single one of them, in relation to the build of more than 70 vessels—the sustainment and maintenance of our current fleet and our future fleet—in the order and at the time they need to be made, which is what this government has done continually. As has been said at estimates and publicly, even if we did make a decision to change, it is still five to six years away. In the meantime, what is this government doing? We have fixed that valley of death of jobs you created in South Australia. You commissioned not a single, not a single, Australian built vessel in our nation. You commissioned not a single one. You didn't progress a future submarine program. This government has done it. We are creating 15,000 jobs. There are not going to be fewer jobs in South Australia. There are already thousands more than when you left government.