Thank you, Deputy Speaker.

As a former serving member of the Australian Defence Force, I welcome the new Labor Government’s Defence Strategic Review.

It’s come not a moment too soon – and frankly, far too late, after much inaction by those opposite, who showed nowhere near the sense of urgency that was needed.

The Strategic Review will be headed by former Defence Minister Stephen Smith and former Chief of the Defence Force Sir Angus Houston, two extremely qualified and competent individuals.

That’s a very good thing.

The Albanese Labor Government is committed to ensuring the ADF’s ability to swiftly and nimbly respond to security challenges within our region and globally.

Now, the new Strategic Review will look at Australia’s capability; strategic circumstances; force posture; and what we want our Defence Force to do.

It’s no exaggeration to say that this will be the most significant Defence Force review conducted in decades.

And there’s a lot to cover.

As the Prime Minister has said:

“It is incumbent on us … to take stock of the billions of dollars in defence investment programs, many of which are over-budget and delayed.”

A shining example of the Coalition’s track record can be seen in its botched handling of the Hunter class frigate procurement process, which is now facing major delays and soaring costs issues thanks to undefined equipment capability.

The Coalition mismanaged every step of the replacement of the Collins class submarine.

Just as a refresher, Deputy Speaker, the former Prime Minister and Member for Wentworth signed a contract to buy 12 French Barracuda class submarines.

But the terms of this contract were poorly defined, to say the least.

The Australian taxpayer ended up forking out $3.5 billion to France before the contract was clumsily terminated.

And who could forget the damage done to Australia’s relationship with France, which led to the French President Emmanuel Macron stating baldly that the former Prime Minister and Member for Cook had lied to him?

It was a devastating blow, which our new Prime Minister and the Member for Grayndler has worked incredibly hard to repair – and the Deputy Prime Minister as well, on last week’s visit to Europe.

Meanwhile, the second delivery of Boxer class reconnaissance vehicles will be delayed by another year.

This comes on the heels of a seven-month delay of the first Boxer delivery.

Similar and serious delays have been forecast for the acquisition of Arafura class patrol boats.

The Member for Canning wants to claim that those opposite while in power made our Australian Defence Force more agile, capable, and nimble, but it’s pretty hard to see any evidence of that.

And it’s dangerous.

The strategic basis for the 1987 Defence White Paper established a strategic setting for this country for 35 years.

Core to that was an idea that if any country meant to do us harm, we would be given a 10-year warning.

Two years ago, the Defence Strategic Update observed for the first time we're within that 10-year window.

That is very significant, and why we need a greater sense of urgency.

There is so much more work to be done to prepare for any potential future conflict within the coming years.

You only need to look north to my electorate in the Top End, where the former CLP Territory Government, with the support of those opposite, leased Darwin’s port to Landbridge for 99 years.

Landbridge, as we all know, is a Chinese company closely affiliated with the Chinese Government.

Honourable Members will remember that the former Trade Minister Andrew Robb, who took a job with Landbridge after overseeing the port lease and then leaving parliament.

Those Australians speaking on behalf of the company have belled the Chinese cat, and have made clear there are no circumstances under which they would choose to relinquish the port.

Since 2015, I have railed against this appallingly poor decision, waved through by the former Treasurer and Member for Cook.

He should resign from parliament based solely on that decision.

It worried no less than the then-President of the United States, Barack Obama, who hadn’t been told.

And I look forward to the result of the current review, as do millions of Australians with unanswered questions.

For instance, the classified Department of Defence review only looked at Defence issues.

But what about the breach of commercial arrangements?

But the Port operators may well be in breach of contract with the NT Government, which remains a 20% stakeholder – and should be getting a dividend.

The ACCC or ATO should be examining pricing and whether profit transfers are going offshore to the head office in China.

Their headquarters are still in Brisbane, six years after the port lease began. They never built the promised six-star hotel at the Darwin Waterfront.

The commercial arrangements aren’t being measured, and no targets are being hit.

Deputy Speaker, the main objective of the Labor Government’s review will be to identify Australia’s emerging national security threats, and to ensure the ADF’s capability and force structure is fit for purpose, affordable, and delivers the best return on investment.

Right now, we’re witnessing a volatile period in geopolitics.

A war has been underway in Europe for over six months, as Russia continues its illegitimate war on Ukraine.

It has destabilised energy and food supplies globally.

Closer to home, we see increasing tensions in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.

Australia’s context as a large island nation in the Indo-Pacific, surrounded by island nations, is unique.

We must prepare for what is to come. That is our duty.