26 June 2013
AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY & DEFENCE NETWORK INC
Australian Defence Industry warns against further long delays in the
Defence Capability Plan
The AIDN National Committee met on 20 June in Brisbane and discussed its concerns for the future prospects of the Australian defence industry. Its members have called upon the AIDN Executive to advocate on their behalf and have tabled a number of concerns to be raised for discussion leading into the next federal election.
According AIDN’s President, Graham Priestnall, stated that ‘regardless of the outcome of the next Federal election, Australia’s defence industry is not in a position to withstand delays implementing the Projects in the Defence Capability Plan. Decisions and acquisition Project commitments must be made within six months of the election. The Defence Capability Plan must clearly define what the Government can afford to enable business to invest in real opportunities.’
Mr Priestnall also noted that AIDN is concerned that Defence and Government do not appear to have a clear understanding or definition of what constitutes the defence industry. The Defence Industry Policy statement makes reference to 3,000 plus suppliers but ignores the multiplier effect of the supply chain that involves the whole of the defence industry and its support base. By not clearly defining the defence industry, the Defence Industry Policy ignores the importance of the contribution made by thousands of Australian’s and in so doing, weakens the relevance of the policy document. AIDN is critical of the level of engagement with industry before the release of the current Defence Policy Statement and believes more rigorous engagement is required if the Government is to produce a meaningful statement.
The Director General of the Australian Military Sales Office (AMSO) attended AIDN’s national meeting and was the Key Note speaker at the AIDN-Qld Annual Dinner held at the United Services Club. Mr Egan discussed the role of AMSO in facilitating government-to-government sales on behalf of industry and also talked about Defence export programs including Team Defence Australian and the Global Supply Chain (GSC) Program. He advised that the GSC program had resulted in $550 Million worth of international work to Australian companies with defence primes.
In other business, Graham Priestnall advised the committee that the current funding arrangements for the Defence Industry Innovation Centre (DIIC) was due to expire within one year. AIDN recognises the important contribution the DIIC has made to strengthening SME businesses and assisting them to become export ready and strongly advocates its continuation. The AIDN National Committee noted that its members have greatly benefitted from the services provided by DIIC which is part of Enterprise Connect.
Graham Priestnall
AIDN National President
Mob: 0409 392 807
