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Preliminary pages

Foreword

During the period July 2008 to June 2009, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) continued to be actively involved in operations both within and outside Australia.  Overseas deployments, which numbered 18 in total, included East Timor, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Northern Indian Ocean, Africa, the Middle East, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Defence also engaged in maritime security operations in the South China Sea in support of regional security, supported United Nations missions, and operated in the Gulf region and the Horn of Africa to counter the threat of piracy. Locally, Defence performed admirably assisting the civil authorities' response to devastating natural disasters such as the Victorian bushfires, and floods in Queensland and New South Wales.

During the review period, Defence also released two important policy and planning documents: the 2009 White Paper, Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030; and the Strategic Reform Program.  The measures and policies within these two documents importantly harmonise the cost saving measures needed to meet Defence’s future force structure requirements.  Simply put, without prudent fiscal management the ADF’s future capability needs cannot be delivered or sustained. The relationship between these two capstone pieces of work will indubitably be an area of focus for the sub-committee in future years. 

At the public hearing into the Defence Annual Report on 30 March 2010, the Defence Sub-Committee chose to examine a broad range of Defence issues as part of the process of accountability of government agencies to parliament. These areas of interest included major projects, recruitment and retention, overseas operational deployments, the Defence estate and the ADF’s operational commitments.

The committee is well aware of the significant challenges the ADF, and in particular the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO), faces in managing very complex, sensitive and technical projects. The committee also acknowledges the importance of implementing the reforms arising from the Mortimer review of defence procurement and sustainment released in September 2008.

More generally, it is the committee’s view that the most important objective for Defence is to acquire needed capability in the shortest time practicable and at an appropriate cost.  It was therefore pleasing for the committee to be advised at the public hearing that some previously listed projects of concern are no longer classified as such. Conversely, the committee also noted that there remain other projects, such as the Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft, that continue to suffer an overly protracted delay in final acceptance.

The Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) project remains the most expensive single acquisition in Defence’s history.  The committee has watched with interest the developments within the United States (US) as the US Department of Defense struggles with the JSF development program. Noting this, the committee will continue to monitor whether the cost and schedule buffers built into the Australian JSF project will provide some assurance that similar problems will not be experienced here.

Recruitment and retention of ADF personnel, an area of concern in recent years as personnel targets consistently fell short, has seen a substantial improvement over the review period. This is a good result and reflects the emphasis placed by Defence in ensuring that the ADF is better placed to meet future demands of new equipment and ongoing operational commitments.  The committee was particularly pleased to note an increase in the number of submariners recruited although further gains are still needed.

The committee acknowledges the service of the men and women of the ADF in their contribution to operations across the globe. The committee also recognises that the ADF could not meet these operational commitments without the support of those ADF personnel who remain behind in non-combat roles. Lastly, and importantly, the committee is grateful of the sacrifices endured by the families, friends and loved ones of those personnel deployed in the maintenance of Australia’s obligations at home and abroad.

The Hon Arch Bevis MP
Chair of Defence Sub-Committee

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