Defence industries—Henderson precinct
438. Mrs Magenta Marshall to the Premier:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's commitment to diversifying our economy and creating jobs for the future.
(1) Can the Premier update the house on how Western Australia, particularly the Henderson precinct, will support the delivery of AUKUS?
(2) Can the Premier advise how this important project will create jobs for generations and make our economy stronger?
Mr Roger Cook replied:
(1)–(2) I thank the member for the question. She is a great advocate for defence industries, particularly from the perspective of her community in Rockingham. Last weekend, Western Australia received the clearest indication yet that defence will become one of the state's biggest industries, and that is saying something in WA, which has the strongest economy in the nation. We have our resources, agriculture, education, construction and health sectors, but, in coming years, defence industries will emerge as a leading source of local jobs.
The key to this growth is our strong partnership with the Albanese Labor government. On Sunday, the Minister for Defence Industries, Paul Papalia, and I stood alongside federal colleagues in Henderson: the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese; the Deputy Prime Minister and federal Minister for Defence, Richard Marles; and the Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Minister for Defence Personnel, Matt Keogh. There at Henderson, the Prime Minister announced $12 billion in funding to advance the Henderson precinct. It is the start of what will be a $25 billion investment in the precinct over the next 20 years. As we know, the precinct will be the home of Australia's future submarine fleet. It will be where vessels like frigates and landing vessels are locally made. It will be where our domestic defence fleet is maintained in perpetuity. It will be the source of some 10,000 direct jobs over the next decade, two decades and beyond.
This is a truly massive opportunity for Western Australia and a massive component of our Made in WA plan. We are building what will become the largest shipbuilding and maintenance hub in the Southern Hemisphere. Members, this is a big deal. Thanks to the federal government, there is now serious funding on the table, but it will take more than that to fully realise the opportunity before us. It will take a team WA approach. It underscores the importance of the State Development Bill introduced in this house last week to make sure that these opportunities do not slip through our hands.
We live in globally uncertain times and, in times of global uncertainty, we need strong leadership, and that is what we are getting from the Albanese Labor government. Western Australia will need to have the agility and the clean energy to make sure that we can take advantage of the opportunities that the defence industries present. This is a huge opportunity to advance our Diversify WA strategy. Defence will become, as I said, one of the biggest industries in the state. The State Development Bill will give us the ability to get these things done. In the lead-up to the last election, we said that WA can and should make more things here, and this is our chance to do so. The continuous shipbuilding program for the Mogami frigates is a huge opportunity for Western Australia, and it will create generational access to skilled and quality jobs.
I want to take the opportunity to acknowledge the Minister for Defence Industries, Hon Paul Papalia. When we were elected in 2017, he took control of the defence industries portfolio. At that stage, defence industries was not even on anyone's radar, and now it is emerging as one of the biggest industries in this state. We are so excited about the opportunities that this represents for Western Australia to continue to make sure that we make more things here under our Made in WA plan, to diversify our economy and to make sure that we remain one of the strongest economies in the nation, creating quality, local jobs for Western Australians.
