Australia Boost Defense Spending in 2015 Defence Budget 13051505.

The Government will provide Defence with $31.9 billion in financial year 2015-16 and $132.6 billion between 2015-16 and 2018-19. This is an increase of $9.9 billion compared with the four-year estimates announced in the 2014-15 Budget (2014-15 to 2017-18).

The Government is committed to strengthening the Australian Defence Force through the development of a credible and fully costed 2015 Defence White Paper, ongoing support to Defence operations and an increased investment in Defence capability.

The Government is committed to implementing its First Principles Review of Defence to ensure the department is properly structured and has the right business practices in place to support the Australian Defence Force in the 21st Century. With ongoing reforms, Defence will be able to make better investments and provide better value to taxpayers. Where we can find cost savings, these will be re-invested in the ADF.

The Government is committed to bolstering our defence capabilities and supporting Australian defence industry.

In the past 12 months, the Government has committed over $5 billion to new Defence capabilities. These projects have included:

• two additional Boeing C-17A Globemaster III aircraft to bolster the Royal Australian Air Force’s existing fleet of six strategic lift aircraft;
• new and improved personal protective equipment for soldiers, including new-generation body armour; and
• state-of-the-art Special Forces vehicles being assembled in Australia.

This is on top of the Government’s decisions to acquire P-8A Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft, MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft, F-35A Joint Strike Fighter and new replenishment vessels for the Royal Australian Navy.

The Government has also announced an investment in the order of $50 billion for Australia’s Future Submarine Programme. This is the largest Defence procurement investment in Australia’s history and we must get it right.

The Government is prepared to invest in the skills and knowledge base of the Australian naval ship building industry, and is prepared to commit to a long-term investment to make sure this important industry enjoys a future in Australia and these critical skills are maintained. Further capability announcements will be made in the Defence White Paper.

Recent events in Australia, Canada, France and around the world demonstrate the global nature of terrorism. The threat posed by ISIL or Daesh, is reaching out to Australians, as the terrorist incidents here late last year demonstrated.

We cannot allow violent extremism to spread to our shores. Nor can we afford to let it spread further within our region. The deployment of the ADF to Iraq reflects one part of the Government’s steadfast commitment to keeping Australians safe from terrorism and preventing the spread of violent extremism.

The Budget provides additional funding of $752.7 million in 2015 16 and $802.4 million between 2015-16 and 2017-18 to support defence operations. Including previously approved funding, this takes the total operations funding to $910.7 million in 2015-16 and $1,071.8 million between 2015-16 and 2017-18.