Morrison Government to cut red tape and strengthen Defence procurement

Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price has today unveiled new plans to cut red tape with the release of the Terms of Reference for a comprehensive review of Defence procurement.

The review into the Australian Standard for Defence Contracting (ASDEFCON) and Defence procurement will seek to strengthen the way Defence does business with defence industry and ensure it has a fit-for-purpose procurement system in place.

Minister Price said the review was timely as the Morrison Government continued to roll out $270 billion in Defence capabilities over the next decade.

“Working to cut red tape is a key part of our ‘Five Pillars’ strategy to support defence industry through the COVID-19 challenges and beyond,” Minister Price said.

“It’s the result of our ongoing dialogue with the sector over many months designed to help them grow their business and deliver strong defence capability.

“By reviewing Defence’s suite of contracting templates, its procurement practices and processes, we can deliver a simpler and less burdensome procurement system.

“We continue to back our men and women in uniform by delivering the capability they need to keep Australians safe.

“We must also ensure we are balancing the needs of our defence industry with those of the Australian Defence Force and that’s what this review will seek to do.”

Minister Price said industry and stakeholders would be engaged and consulted as part of the strengthening of defence procurement.

“This is an opportunity for defence industry to put forward ideas, solutions and feedback to improve what is a critical system for Defence,” Minister Price said. 

The goals of the ASDEFCON and Defence Procurement Review are to fully examine Defence industry’s views on how Defence approaches the market at all stages of a procurement.

The Terms of Reference for the review and process for consultation can be found here.

The review is expected to be finalised by mid-2021, with a summary of the key findings to be released after consideration by the Government.