Budget 2014 starts to correct Labor’s ‘$30 billion defence fantasy’

DEFENCE Minister David Johnston says the federal budget is the first step in correcting what he calls Labor’s “$30 billion defence fantasy”.

DEFENCE Minister David Johnston says the 2014 federal budget is the first step in correcting what he describes as Labor’s “$30 billion defence fantasy”.

The straight-talking WA Senator told News Corp Australia that Labor’s dishonest hollowing out of defence funding to help fudge economic data secretly cut $16 billion from the defence budget.

That included $9.2 billion from the Defence Capability Plan that guides future equipment purchases for the military.

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The minister also revealed that he would take a plan to cabinet’s national security committee within weeks to remedy the shipbuilding “valley of death”.

That plan could involve a Korean design to sweeten a free-trade agreement with South Korea.

He also said that the 2015 Defence White Paper and a fully funded capability plan would have at its centre plans for a new Australian “submarine enterprise”.

The document would not talk in terms of total numbers but would plan for a new and upgraded boat to be launched every two years to replace the Collins vessels.

Under a new Submarine Life Extension Plan the Collins will be in service for five extra years until 2030.

“I do not want a capability gap,” Senator Johnston said.

“I don’t want a capability gap” ... Captain Byron Williamson in front of the Collins class submarine, HMAS Farncomb.

He said the government was committed to assembling the new boats in Adelaide to preserve skills and because stealth and other systems needed to be secure.

“We can’t do things with them in another country. We have got to do them here in Australia.”

He said the new submarine would be no bigger than the Collins Class and would be cost effective and meet navy’s requirements.

Formerly secret data obtained by News Corp Australia show that 119 key projects were delayed, 43 suffered funding cuts and eight were cancelled between 2009 and the federal election.

The cuts were hidden from public view after 2009 when the government stopped releasing approved capability plans for defence.

“At least 43 projects inherited by the Abbott Government are now unlikely to meet their planned capabilities because funding has been sliced,” Senator Johnston said.

These projects were ‘salami sliced’ to the tune of five to 10 per cent of their overall funds.

“Labor’s dishonest hollowing out of Defence ... stops with this budget.”

Some of the projects either delayed or subjected to the ‘meat slicer’ include:

DEPLOYABLE health capability

LANDING craft replacement

ENHANCED special operations capability

TOWED howitzer

NIGHT fighting equipment replacement

EXPLOSIVE ordnance warstock

Senator Johnston said the 2015 White Paper and force structure review would closely examine what could be salvaged from Labor’s flawed plans and the fiction of the 2009 and 2013 White Papers.

Labor delayed 119 key Defence projects, cut funding to 43 and canned eight ... Shadow defence minister Senator Stephen Conroy said his party did the opposite.

Shadow defence minister Stephen Conroy said Labor committed $114 billion over four years to the portfolio.

“Labor also committed $220 billion over the defence guidance period, which was not matched by the Coalition on Tuesday night,” he said.

“Labor has ensured funding for critical capability acquisitions, such as the purchase of an additional 58 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, the Triton Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and eight P-8A Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft.”

Mr Johnston also revealed that Australian forces would build much closer relationships with China and Japan in the years ahead.

He said he expected Australian forces to be exercising with Chinese forces in the near future in the wake of the Malaysia Airlines search operation.

“MH370 was all about doing that and it has opened the door to some opportunities that would not otherwise have been there,” Senator Johnston said. “I am very strong on military diplomacy.”

Originally published as Budget 2014 starts to correct Labor’s ‘$30 billion defence fantasy’