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- The Albanese Government has accepted the overwhelming majority of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide’s, 122 recommendations. In a joint press conference, the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said Government agreed or agreed-in-principle to 104 recommendations, noting seventeen recommendations for further consideration and rejected one recommendation in part. The government rejected the removal of the so-called “service differential” for permanent impairment that sees higher payouts for those injured during operational service than those injured during training. Supported was the establishment of a new statutory entity to provide independent oversight and evidence-based advice to improve suicide prevention and drive better outcomes for serving and ex-serving ADF personnel. An interim head is to be appointed as soon as possible to work across government towards the establishment of a legislated oversight body by September 2025. A Taskforce in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet will be established to consider matters of detailed implementation. The Department of Veterans Affairs is to co-design, with the veteran community, a new agency focused on wellbeing. The DVA will also be funded to continue consultation on the development of a national ex-service organisation peak body.
- Parliament has launched a new defence inquiry which includes a focus on defence industry policy. The Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade will conduct an inquiry into the Department of Defence Annual Report 2023-24. Key themes of the inquiry include Sovereign Defence Industrial Priorities; the Defence Estate; Security and Resilience; AUKUS; Uncrewed/Autonomous Systems and international defence cooperation and competition. Under the Sovereign Defence Industrial Priorities reference the committee will examine Defence’s progress to achieving continuous naval shipbuilding, enhanced self-reliance and resilience in guided weapons and explosive ordinance, fuel supply assurance and innovation, research and advanced capability acceleration. The Committee said a robust, dependable, and effective sovereign defence industry was essential for the defence of Australia and its national interests. 2024 saw the release of the National Defence Strategy and Defence Industry Development Strategy. Submissions close on February 3, 2025.
- Australia and Singapore are working on increasing access to military facilities as the two nations deepen defence ties. The details will form part of an updated strategic agreement set to be signed in 2025. Further training opportunities for Singaporeans in Australia were being worked on, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said. Every Singaporean pilot had been trained in Australia.
- • The Albanese Government has awarded several contracts under a qualification process which paves the way for the Australian businesses to enter UK and US (AUKUS) submarine supply chains. Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the program demonstrated how AUKUS could deliver for Australians and local businesses by providing opportunities for growth and jobs. The Defence Industry Vendor Qualification (DIVQ) Program aims to enable Australian businesses to supply their products and services into the AUKUS trilateral submarine industrial base. The contracts to HIFraser, Mack Valves, Bale Defence and STAUFF Corporation, will enable these businesses to commence manufacture of a sample of standard US Navy valves and pipe fittings as part of their qualification process – a critical step to becoming approved vendors within the US submarine industrial base. Once qualified, these businesses will have the opportunity to manufacture and supply valves or pipe fittings for use in the construction and sustainment of a range of navy platforms, including Virginia class submarines. For further information on becoming involved in the build and sustainment supply chains, the Defence Industry Vendor Qualification Program and industry engagement activities, companies can register their interest through the ICN Gateway.
- A parliamentary inquiry into defence procurement has been finalised amid protests from Coalition Senators that it has failed to allow industry to voice fresh concerns about the impact of defence project cuts. The concerns are raised in a dissenting report to the Performance of the Department of Defence in supporting the capability and capacity of Australia’s defence industry inquiry by the Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee. An interim report released last year expressed concerns with defence procurement over such issues as the definition of sovereign capability, deficiencies in current processes and a lack of measurement and monitoring. In a final majority committee report tabled last week, Committee Chair and Victorian Labor Senator Raff Ciccone, suggests work is in progress to address concerns raised in the interim report including through the 2024 Defence Industry Development Strategy. However, Coalition members (namely deputy chair and Tasmanian Liberal Senator Claire Chandler and South Australian Liberal Senator David Fawcett) suggested Australian SMEs which had invested in capability to provide or at least be key supply chain partners for contracted capabilities were still reeling from the flow-down impacts of project cancellations, delays or descoping. The Senators suggested the cumulative effect of the Defence Strategic Review (DSR), and the cuts and re-profiling of defence projects had led to a decline in Australian defence jobs and an increase in overseas procurement. The dissenting report also cited AIDN Board Chair Carl Quarterman’s Gala Dinner speech in which he expressed concerns about a lack of SME contracts. However, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told parliament last week that the Albanese government had spent $22 billion on Australian capability acquisition and sustainment in the last financial year which was a record spend.
