Portfolio — 25 March 2026

The Assistant Minister for Defence, Mr Peter Khalil, used a Matter of Public Importance debate on 25 March to deliver the government's most detailed public account yet of its response to fuel-supply disruption flowing from the Strait of Hormuz conflict. The parliamentary record is the sole stream for this day — no ministerial media releases were captured in the window.

Mr Khalil's central argument was that Australia faces a demand problem, not a supply failure. He told the House that all six shipments cancelled as a result of the conflict have been replaced and that three additional cargo ships are scheduled for April and May deliveries [TA-260325-house-8e0b2c08f739:s069]. He attributed the pressure consumers are experiencing at the bowser to demand spikes amplified by panic buying, pointing to the month-long production and transport cycle from the Middle East as the reason supply adjustments take time to flow through [TA-260325-house-8e0b2c08f739:s069].

On the policy response, Mr Khalil listed a cluster of coordinated measures. The government has released up to 20 per cent of the baseline minimum stockholding obligation for petrol and diesel and secured two additional supply agreements delivering 757 million litres to regional Australia [TA-260325-house-8e0b2c08f739:s069]. Anthea Harris has been appointed as Fuel Supply Taskforce Coordinator.

The National Oil Supplies Emergency Committee has been convened, alongside roundtables with fuel, transport and agricultural sectors. New information-gathering powers have been granted to the department secretary and the ACCC specifically to monitor fuel pricing and prevent anticompetitive conduct — a signal that the government is watching for profiteering as well as managing logistics.

The defence dimension of the debate drew a distinct line of argument. Mr Khalil stated that Defence strategic reserves have doubled since 2022 and that the first phase of the Defence fuel resilience program — a $3 billion commitment — has been delivered, covering infrastructure, storage and transport investment [TA-260325-house-8e0b2c08f739:s069]. This framing separates the civilian fuel-security challenge from Defence operational readiness, presenting the latter as already addressed through prior investment.

The overarching government position, as presented by Mr Khalil, treats fuel security as a coordination challenge spanning Commonwealth and state agencies, industry and supply chains — not a structural shortage. The measures outlined are designed to stabilise prices, prevent profiteering and absorb demand-driven pressure while replacement shipments arrive. The appointment of a dedicated taskforce coordinator and the activation of the National Oil Supplies Emergency Committee suggest the government is operating in a sustained crisis-management posture rather than treating this as a transient spike.