MORRISON GOVERNMENT DELIVERS ON DEFENCE INNOVATION PRECINCT FOR LAUNCESTON

The Morrison Government will invest $30 million in Phase 1 of the Tasmanian Defence Innovation and Design Precinct at the University of Tasmania’s Australian Maritime College (AMC) in Launceston. 

The new Precinct will help drive defence-related research and development projects, creating more jobs in Launceston and a world-class research precinct. 

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said it is estimated over 150 additional jobs in the region will be created each year, with up to 58 additional jobs in the region during the construction program.

“Our focus is on delivering more jobs for Tasmanians,” Mr Morrison said.

“Our plan for strong economy means we’re backing Tasmania’s defence industries and naval capability with a $30 million investment.

“Only the Liberals and Nationals have a proven track record of building Australia’s defence industry and capabilities.

“By contrast Labor will tax Tasmanians more and not build a single naval ship – that was their record in their six years of government.”

The Morrison Government will require local businesses and tradies undertake work on the projects, as is done for other defence infrastructure projects.

In particular, the Precinct will help the Morrison Government deliver on its massive $200 billion investment in defence capability over the next decade and its $90 billion national Naval Shipbuilding Plan.

The AMC and University of Tasmania are already supporting the Australian Defence Force and defence industry, by providing innovative research and development to support our defence capability. 

The AMC’s Cavitation Research Laboratory is a crucial capability enabler for the Royal Australian Navy and the AMC is a key part of our National Shipbuilding College.

By supporting Phase 1 of the Research and Design Precinct, a re-elected Morrison Government will be supporting the high value testing and evaluation needs of the Royal Australian Navy; increasing opportunities for greater collaboration between Defence, academia and industry to deliver cutting-edge defence capability; and build the AMC’s ability to support the National Shipbuilding College as it builds the workforce of the future to deliver on our national Naval Shipbuilding Plan.

Tasmania is home to a growing defence industry, providing niche capabilities for the Australian Defence Force, and exporting world-class technology around the globe. 

By creating a Tasmanian Defence Innovation and Design Precinct at the AMC, the Morrison Government will be bringing together Tasmanian industry to create more jobs.

The Coalition’s 2016 Defence White Paper committed $1.6 billion to defence-related innovation over a decade, supporting Australian science, technology and innovation to provide advanced home-grown Defence capabilities.

Only the Coalition can be trusted to deliver on its Defence commitments.  Labor’s record when it comes to Defence is one of over $18 billion in cuts and slashing the Defence budget to its lowest level since 1938 as a proportion of GDP.  Labor simply cannot be trusted on Defence.

The Coalition Government along with the University of Tasmania and Tasmanian Liberal Government, has been working on since the release of the 2016 Defence White Paper and our joint $500,000 investment in the development of a business case for the precinct in 2017.