SA Defence Industry even stronger under a Marshall Government

South Australia’s already burgeoning defence industry has been given a boost following the election of the Steven Marshall led Liberal government.

The federal Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP, and the Premier of South Australia, the Hon Steven Marshall MP have formally met to discuss the broad range of defence related issues and opportunities in South Australia.

Premier Marshall said that the meeting with Minister Pyne to discuss the implementation of the South Australian Government’s Defence Workforce policy productively ticked off another commitment promised for the Liberal’s first 100 days in government.

“I committed to meeting with the Prime Minister and Minister Pyne in my first 100 days to discuss the implementation of our Defence Workforce policy as well as a wide range of other defence related issues, and that’s exactly what I’ve done,” Premier Marshall said

Minister Pyne welcomed Premier Marshall’s leadership in the portfolio.

“Premier Marshall has already displayed he will be a strong partner for the Federal Government’s investment in defence capability and transformation of Australia’s defence industry,” Minister Pyne said.

“He understands the opportunities and possibilities for South Australia, and is leading from the front to ensure they can be grasped and maximised for the betterment of our defence capability and the workers of South Australia.”

During their meeting, Minister Pyne and Premier Marshall discussed a range of matters including opportunities for defence exports focusing on the United States; the Commonwealth’s plans for the Osborne Naval Shipyard; the continuing expansion of activity at the RAAF Edinburgh Base; the Commonwealth’s plans for the Australian Space Agency; and possibilities to strengthen the defence focus of the Mawson Lakes precinct.

“Having the core of Australia’s Naval Shipbuilding program based here in South Australia presents a golden opportunity to capture a range of national and international defence contracts for South Australian businesses and individuals,” Premier Marshall said.

“I will be working productively with Minister Pyne to identify and aggressively pursue opportunities to capitalise on the export opportunities from our growing base of defence industries to drive the creation of well-paid highly skilled defence sector jobs,”

“South Australia is already punching above its weight in the Australian defence sector and with the right policy settings, and a strong focus on export opportunities we have the capacity to become a real international player.