Anger at ‘minister for no defence industry’ go-slow

Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price is under fire after failing to begin a promised audit of Australian content in billions of dollars of Defence contracts.

Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price. Picture: Sean Davey

Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price is under fire after failing to begin a promised audit of Australian content in billions of dollars of Defence contracts nearly seven months after she announced it.

Ms Price, who was demoted from cabinet after the last election, vowed on February 6 she would hold major defence contractors to account over their obligations to work with Australian suppliers.

But she told The Australian in recent days that the “forensic” audit was yet to get off the ground.

“The independent AIC audit program is with me for approval and I will release the details of the program and how it will work very soon,” she said. “I am finalising its structure, processes and the resources behind it.”

Opposition defence industry spokesman Matt Keogh said Ms Price had been “clearly negligent” in failing to get the audit under way.

He said if the government was serious about backing the ­defence industry, the audit would have been finished by now.

“The minister is AWOL when it comes to supporting Australian defence industry.

“If she’s not careful, soon she will be the minister for no defence industry,” Mr Keogh told The Australian.

The lack of progress comes despite prime ministerial concerns that Australian firms are being overlooked, after a boat builder in Scott Morrison’s electorate was denied a chance to bid on a $53m contract handed to a foreign ­company.

Defence’s decision to award a contract to build 41 inflatable boats to a Finnish boatbuilder without a competitive tender outraged local companies, including Britton Marine in the Prime Minister’s electorate of Cook.

The Australian Industry and Defence Network called for the program “to be finalised without delay and the results to be made public”.

“We believe this program is fundamental to address the concerns that Australian industry has around the inclusion of Australian companies into Defence programs by the foreign-owned multinational prime contractors,” AIDN chief executive Brent Clarke said.

It is understood the independent audit program is due to begin in coming weeks.

Some defence companies have criticised Ms Price’s performance in the portfolio, previously held by Christopher Pyne.

She has been accused of failing to stand up to the Defence Department, and taking the advice of foreign-owned prime contractors over their Australian supply chain firms.