2 years ago
STILL NO ANSWER ON SUBS
BRENDAN O’CONNOR MP
Scott Morrison’s meeting with the French President Emmanuel Macron has left Australians with more questions than answers over the future of our submarine program.
If the Government hadn’t mismanaged the Future Submarines from the very beginning the Prime Minister wouldn’t need to be having crisis talks to save the program which is 10 years late and $40 billion over budget.
It was reported in March that an in principle agreement on the design phase was set to be signed by April 1. That did not happen.
Now Scott Morrison is scrambling to have the agreement signed by September, coinciding with the lead up to the Federal Election.
Will Australians even know if the Morrison Government will keep this project – the largest procurement in Australia’s history - or switch to the foreshadowed “Plan B” before they cast their vote?
After six Defence Ministers in eight years the Future Submarine program has been plagued by issues that have been left unresolved, including whether key parts of the submarines will be built here or in France.
The Morrison Government should have had a proper tender process and ensured the contract had enforceable local industry content from the start, but instead rushed for a headline with no plan to follow through at the 2016 election.
Are we risking similar stuff ups with this next phase as Scott Morrison rushes to meet a political timeline?
Labor wants to see the Future Submarines project delivered on time, on budget, and built here in Australia maximising local industry content.
If the Government hadn’t mismanaged the Future Submarines from the very beginning the Prime Minister wouldn’t need to be having crisis talks to save the program which is 10 years late and $40 billion over budget.
It was reported in March that an in principle agreement on the design phase was set to be signed by April 1. That did not happen.
Now Scott Morrison is scrambling to have the agreement signed by September, coinciding with the lead up to the Federal Election.
Will Australians even know if the Morrison Government will keep this project – the largest procurement in Australia’s history - or switch to the foreshadowed “Plan B” before they cast their vote?
After six Defence Ministers in eight years the Future Submarine program has been plagued by issues that have been left unresolved, including whether key parts of the submarines will be built here or in France.
The Morrison Government should have had a proper tender process and ensured the contract had enforceable local industry content from the start, but instead rushed for a headline with no plan to follow through at the 2016 election.
Are we risking similar stuff ups with this next phase as Scott Morrison rushes to meet a political timeline?
Labor wants to see the Future Submarines project delivered on time, on budget, and built here in Australia maximising local industry content.