Roger Cook moves to assure US after rogue MP’s AUKUS claims

State and federal opposition MPs slammed state MP Kyle McGinn and Labor for allowing factional politics and union influences to potentially jeopardise the AUKUS program.

Outgoing WA state Labor MP Kyle McGinn, left, and WA Premier Roger Cook. Picture: Facebook

You can now listen to The Australian's articles. Give us your feedback.

You can now listen to The Australian's articles.

The Cook government has dispatched its Defence Industries Minister to the United States after one of its own MPs used a secret visit to Washington to spread security concerns about the AUKUS program.

West Australian Premier Roger Cook on Thursday said Paul Papalia – who last month was sworn in as the state’s new Defence Industries Minister – was in the US for a series of meetings as he sought to downplay the significance of recent actions by Labor upper house MP Kyle McGinn.

The Australian revealed on Wednesday that Mr McGinn, a parliamentary secretary under Mr Cook until March 15, had met with senior Democrat and Republican politicians during a secret visit to the US capital.

While there, he presented a documented prepared by the Maritime Union of Australia’s WA branch warning of the security risks posed to AUKUS by the Cook government’s proposed Westport shipping terminal.

The document argued that relocating Perth’s container port from Fremantle to Kwinana would increase the number of foreign ships passing HMAS Stirling naval base, where Australian and US nuclear-powered submarines will be based under AUKUS.

“Obviously it’s not ideal, but I think people understand the importance that AUKUS plays at a state, national and international level,” Mr Cook said.

“I think the comments from a member of parliament in the state parliament that’s exiting the parliament will not have great gravity when it comes to the issues.”

Kyle McGinn has a long history with the MUA, which has held concerns over the implications that a heavily automated Westport could have on its existing workers at Fremantle. Picture: supplied

Mr Cook said Mr Papalia was in the US meeting with contractors and companies about the opportunities in the state.

The Premier confirmed he was unaware about Mr McGinn’s lobbying efforts until his office received a query from The Australian on Wednesday.

Mr McGinn’s visit, which he said was paid for out of his own pocket and conducted while he was on leave, followed his relegation to an unwinnable position on WA Labor’s upper house ticket at the state election and his failed attempt to win preselection for the new federal seat of Bullwinkel.

Mr McGinn has a long history with the MUA, which has held concerns over the implications that a heavily automated Westport could have on its existing workers at Fremantle.

State and federal opposition MPs slammed Mr McGinn and Labor for allowing factional politics and union influences to potentially jeopardise the AUKUS program.

Tjorn Sibma, deputy leader of the WA Liberal Party in the upper house, told The Australian Mr McGinn’s actions showed there were clear divisions within WA Labor over fundamental strategic issues.

“There has never been in living memory a member of a Western Australian government who has travelled overseas with a secret mission to undermine confidence in an important state government infrastructure project, and who then simultaneously imperils confidence in the most important defence alliance agreement since the Second World War,” Mr Sibma said.

“That apparently neither Cook nor (WA Deputy Premier Rita) Saffioti knew that their parliamentary secretary colleague was MIA for the MUA alarms me greatly. Too much is presently on the line for Western Australia’s national and international reputation for them to have dropped the ball on this.”

Federal opposition defence spokesman Andrew Hastie said the saga pointed to ongoing issues within Labor over the project.

“Yet again, Labor is at war among themselves about AUKUS,” Mr Hastie said.

“This shows that Labor can’t be trusted to drive and deliver this nation-building project.”

WA Liberal leader Basil Zempilas described Mr McGinn’s trip as “alarming”.

“Premier Cook can’t distance himself from Kyle McGinn and the MUA. This is another worrying example of the union influence over the Cook Labor government and their MPs,” he said.

“The Premier cannot downplay this issue by categorising Kyle McGinn as a private citizen, given he was – and remains to be – an elected Labor MP, and was, until two weeks ago, a parliamentary secretary in the Cook government.”

While many inside Labor are privately seething over Mr McGinn’s conduct, his looming departure from parliament has increased the likelihood that he will escape official sanction.

Asked about Mr McGinn’s actions in Perth on Thursday afternoon, federal Defence Minister Richard Marles said he remained very confident about the position of the Trump administration on AUKUS.

“The fact of the matter is, when you actually look at what’s happening in the United States, people across the political spectrum in the US are repeatedly supporting AUKUS and what it seeks to do because AUKUS is in the strategic advantage of Australia, of course, but also the United States,” Mr Marles said.

“He does not speak for the Australian government, the position of the Australian government is clear.”