Minister for Defence Materiel - 3AW Radio Interview with Tom Elliott

3AW Radio Interview with Tom Elliott

Thursday, 25 February 2016

Topics: Defence White Paper; Future Submarine Program

Tom Elliott:       

My next guest does deserve a lot of attention. He is the Minister for Defence Materiel, Liberal MP, Dan Tehan. Good afternoon.

Dan Tehan:        

Afternoon Tom, how are you?

Tom Elliott:       

Good thank you. Now you’ve released a new Defence White Paper today. It talks about spending a hundred and fifty billion dollars over the life of our next submarine fleet. Is that a good way to spend our money?

Dan Tehan:        

Well we have to secure our nation and that is the number one priority of government. And you must remember Tom, that when you secure your nation, and especially if you can help ensure that you have a stable security environment in the Asia Pacific, then that means that our commerce can also prosper. So by making sure we’re doing our bit to secure the nation and secure the region we’re also ensuring that our economy can continue to grow, that we can continue to trade throughout the Asia Pacific and further. So today’s announcement of a $30 billion investment over the next 10 years into our Defence Forces I think is incredibly important.

Tom Elliott:       

Okay. Now can I focus on the submarines though. Now we are talking about building a new fleet of 12 submarines. I think the Collins Class, we’ve only got six, correct?

Dan Tehan:        

That’s right, yes.

Tom Elliott:       

Now I’ve read that we’ve struggled to get enough submarines to serve on six Collins Class submarines. If we build 12 new ones, how are we going to put people on them?

Dan Tehan:        

Well this is something that the Defence Minister, Marise Payne, has given great thought to, as the Prime Minister has, as has the National Security Committee of Cabinet. The way that this Defence White Paper was put together was, we went back and we said okay what is our need to keep our nation safe? And especially, given that we’re an island nation, as is very clear to all of us, what we need is to make sure is that we have the Force Structure that we need to keep ourselves safe. And that means that we need a submarine fleet.

Tom Elliott:       

Okay. So are you going to pay submariners more to attract enough to serve on 12 new submarines?

Dan Tehan:        

Well these will obviously be built over time. But one of the important things in the Defence White Paper is that we are also going to make sure that we’ve got the workforce to support our Defence Forces and our defence industry. So there’s a significant emphasis in ensuring that we’ve got the capability. This isn’t just about purchasing the hardware, this is also making sure that we’ve got the ability to put crew on the submarines, and to ensure that all the hardware we’ve got have the resources it needs to operate properly.

Tom Elliott:       

Now what about where we build them? I know there’s a big debate going on as to whether we build them here in Australia or build them overseas. Which way is that heading?

Dan Tehan:        

Look the Government has made it very clear that it’s going through a Competitive Evaluation Process and basically the Government is not going to comment while we’re going through that process as to what would happen. And the White Paper sets out what we need and now we’re going through a Competitive Evaluation Process. That is in the domain of the Defence Minister, Marise Payne; she is handling that incredibly capably and we just have to wait and see what that process leads to.

Tom Elliott:       

Instead of building unique submarines for Australia – we have these unusual demands – we want a diesel electric submarine, but it has to have very long range, we also want one that is very big and can shoot off cruise missiles and land special forces overseas. Could we consider leasing submarines from another country, and in particular why don’t we lease nuclear attack submarines from America, rather than building them ourselves?

Dan Tehan:        

Well Tom the Government is going through a Competitive Evaluation Process, this is obviously – the Minister for Defence is overseeing this, it will go to the National Security Committee of Cabinet, so this is a process which is taking place now. I don’t want to comment further while that process is taking place.

Tom Elliott:       

But would you even consider leasing a nuclear submarine? I mean it would buy us far more capability for a lot less money than trying to build these ones ourselves.

Dan Tehan:        

Well Tom, as I’ve said previously, we’re going through a Competitive Evaluation Process and while that’s occurring I’m not going to comment further.

Tom Elliott:       

Okay. There’s another thing I’ve read, that you know how with aircraft these days are rapidly heading towards pilot-less drones, where the pilot is somewhere else operating the aircraft remotely, that maybe submarines are going the same way. That in fact pilot-less submarines, controlled remotely, might replace big submarines with a crew of a hundred people onboard. Is that something that’s being looked at?

Dan Tehan:        

So what this Defence White Paper is about is having a methodical look at what our Defence Force needs will be over the next decade, and the next twenty and thirty years. What the Government went through was a methodical process, we consulted with our region, we consulted with our allies, and then we got experts in to provide advice, and they said, right this is the capabilities that you require. The Government then said, alright we’ve got to make sure we’ve got the investment to back that up. And this is the first fully costed Defence White Paper this country has had in the last twenty years.

Tom Elliott:       

Does anybody in these White Papers ever put a name to who our future enemy might be?

Dan Tehan:        

So what this White Paper does is set out the six drivers which will shape the Australian security environment to 2035. So it talks about those six drivers, and that obviously is a key consideration as to how then you go about analysing and assessing, okay what is the hardware that you then require to keep the nation safe.

Tom Elliott:       

So final question, so when do make a decision, when do we say right’o this is what our new submarine is going to be, here’s how many we build, here’s how much it costs?

Dan Tehan:        

Well, the Defence Minister is going through a process. I have full confidence in how she’s doing that. It’s a Competitive Evaluation Process. I’m sure that we’ll get the right outcome at the end of the day. But in the end –

Tom Elliott:       

Wait. When is the end of the day?

Dan Tehan:        

I don’t want to –

Tom Elliott:       

When is the end of the day?

Dan Tehan:        

I’ll get you to ask those questions to the Minister for Defence because –

Tom Elliott:       

Oh Dan!

[Laughter]

Dan Tehan:        

Oh come on Tom!

[Laughter]

Dan Tehan:        

As you know you stick to what you know and then you don’t go guessing about what you don’t know.

Tom Elliott:       

Dan Tehan, Minister for Defence Materiel, thank you for your time.

Dan Tehan:        

Pleasure Tom.