Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2025-2026

Ms LAWRENCE (Hasluck) (18:31): The Albanese government is committed to ensuring that, in this strategic moment, our Defence Force has the equipment, the capability, the people and the funding it needs to keep Australians safe. I thank every person who is serving in our Defence Force, both current and former, for their service. We have ended the underfunding, we have ended the chaos, and we have ended the dysfunction under the coalition and, through providing stability and continuity, are able to focus on the things that matter.

This is also true in the Defence portfolio. The government began by undertaking foundational strategic thinking, including through the 2023 Defence Strategic Review and the National Defence Strategy. This approach, long overdue, has allowed us to properly assess our defence capability needs and then resource them.

Following that review, we have increased defence funding to record levels. Just last month, the Albanese Labor government announced it will provide an additional $12 billion for the defence precinct at Henderson in my home state of Western Australia. This welcome investment builds on our increase in defence funding, which will now see an additional $70 billion invested in defence capabilities over the next decade, compared with the coalition's projections.

The coalition talks a big game in defence, as it does in many policy areas; however, Labor just gets on and delivers. In this term, delivery is fundamental to what we must achieve, and we have a laser focus on delivering the capabilities we do need to keep Australians safe. The Albanese government is committing to developing a world-class shipbuilding and sustainment precinct at Henderson in Western Australia.

The establishment of a consolidated defence precinct at Henderson is the critical next step in delivering continuous naval shipbuilding in WA. This will support the programs for submarines and frigates and for vessels like the Guardian class patrol boat, which I was honoured to represent the minister in handing over to the government of Samoa in a ceremony in 2023 at HMAS Stirling.

As we announced last month, the Albanese government will provide the $12 billion towards delivering the defence precinct at Henderson, which is a significant downpayment. This early commitment of funding will provide certainty to industry and will underpin the delivery of the construction of surface vessels for the Australian Defence Force, starting with the Army's landing craft and, pending successful consolidation, the domestic build element of Australia's future general-purpose frigates; facilities to support the sustainment of Australia's surface combatant vessels; contingency docking capabilities for Australia's future conventionally-armed nuclear-powered submarine fleet from the early 2030s; and depot-level maintenance, including graving docks.

Over the next two decades, our government's plan will see tens of billions of dollars invested in defence capabilities in the west, supporting in the order of 10,000 well-paid, high-skilled jobs. Our government continues to invest in the capabilities our Defence Force needs now and into the future, of course, to meet those strategic circumstances. The Albanese government just announced the selection of the Japanese upgraded Mogami class frigate as the preferred platform for the Navy's future general-purpose frigate fleet, which is the most significant capability decision taken since the announcement of the AUKUS optimal pathway in 2023.

The upgraded Mogami class frigate will also help shore up our maritime trade routes and Australia's northern approaches. Importantly, while the first three vessels will be built in Japan, the announcement is part of our commitment to continuous naval shipbuilding in WA; subject to the successful consolidation of the Henderson defence precinct, the remaining eight frigates will be built locally, in WA.

This will, of course, involve important skills transfers and the development of local capacity, and no doubt an ongoing relationship between our industry and that of Japan. The Albanese government is investing up to $8 billion to upgrade HMAS Stirling and support the implementation of the Submarine Rotational Force-West, SRF-West, creating around 3,000 direct jobs.

This investment includes wharf upgrades, operational maintenance and other infrastructure to support the increase in port visits by both UK and United States submarines as well as our own fleet. A further 500 direct jobs will also be related to the SRF-West over 2027-2032. I have another two pages to read, but I'm running out of time—there is just so much we are delivering on.

So I will come to my question. Does the minister agree that the WA continuous naval shipbuilding program is an integral part of the government's plan for Defence?