Motions

Defence Workforce Plan

Debate resumed.

Mr PATTERSON (Morphett) (12:27): I rise to support the motion by the member for King specifically acknowledging the state government's Defence Workforce Plan to ensure South Australia has the skilled workforce required to fully capitalise on the federal government's $90 billion investment in naval shipbuilding.

Before discussing the other elements of the motion it is worth reflecting on the federal government's $90 billion investment into naval shipbuilding in this state. It really stems from the three air warfare destroyers that are being built at the Osborne Naval Shipbuilding Precinct and are coming to a close there. While that is finalising, the federal government is centring its naval shipbuilding program in South Australia, with the construction of the first two offshore patrol vessels followed by the Future Frigate Program and the submarine program.

In terms of the offshore patrol vessels, construction is due to commence in quarter four of 2018 at the Osborne Naval Shipbuilding Precinct. These offshore patrol vessels, the two of them, will be constructed here by ASC Shipbuilding, and this is designed to overcome the valley of death that has been created by the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd federal administration taking no action on the shipbuilding program that was there previously—in terms of where we got to today. There have been attempts to place credit in the wrong places, I feel.

After these patrol vessels, there will be the Future Frigate shipbuilding program, which has been instituted by the Abbott-Turnbull government. The Future Frigate Program involves the construction of nine vessels, with that construction commencing in 2020 at the Osborne Naval Shipbuilding Precinct. So you can see that valley of death there, the two years of hiatus there, and the skills that would be lost without these two offshore patrol vessels being built there.

The Future Frigate Program has a total program value of $35 billion, creating approximately 2,000 direct jobs, as well as the indirect jobs that come from that. By far the biggest program of the Abbott-Turnbull government's shipbuilding program is the Future Submarine Program, with construction to commence at the Osborne Naval Shipbuilding Precinct.

Naval Group Australia has been selected as the international design partner, with a total program value of $50 billion. This represents the biggest single defence spend in the nation's history, a spend brought on by the Abbott-Turnbull government, and it is happening here in South Australia. As the Premier himself has stated in this house, this $50 billion submarine program is also a big deal in France.

Naval Group Australia estimates that 2,800 jobs will be created in South Australia. Direct jobs from the build will be approximately 1,100, as well as 1,700 supply chain jobs. Currently, Naval Group Australia employs approximately 80 staff in South Australia and aims to double this figure by the end of 2018. Industry experts estimate that the indirect jobs impact of this could be as high as 3:1, so you can see it is very important to jobs here in South Australia.

The detailed design work on the future submarines will start moving from France to South Australia in 2022. For the detailed design and production planning activities, 270 Australian jobs will be created. Because of this big program on the books, the shipbuilding workforce will need to increase by some 3,600 staff from around 2021. Around 77 per cent of these will be tradespeople in fabrication and electrical and mechanical engineering.

In fact, the federal government's Naval Shipbuilding Plan states that the shipbuilding workforce in South Australia will need to increase by around two to three times from current employment levels, with demand for construction workers peaking at around 5,200 in 2026. By outlining the extent of the shipbuilding program that is to occur between now and 2030 in South Australia, it is clear that the size and skill levels of the naval shipbuilding workforce in South Australia will need to increase significantly to meet demands.

However, significant challenges exist in ensuring that a workforce with the required range of skills is available within that program's time lines. Shipbuilders and others in the naval shipbuilding and sustainment industry have reported difficulty in sourcing workers with the required skills and experience. This impending skills shortage has been recognised as one of the highest risk factors in the establishment of a continuous naval shipbuilding program.

As a government, we cannot sit back and allow this massive opportunity unfold around us. We need to plan for this and reap the substantial rewards on offer for our state. That is why the Marshall Liberal government is developing a comprehensive defence workforce plan in conjunction with both industry and the federal government. The plan includes reviewing the existing skills base in local industry; an industry-needs assessment, forecasting the types of qualifications and number of workers needed for the next 20 years and identifying current and former automotive sector workers who have the skills to fill identified defence jobs.

Under this Defence Workforce Plan, the Marshall Liberal government will identify requisite qualifications for inclusion on the subsidised training list under the existing WorkReady scheme. It will also support registered training organisations to provide automotive workers with formal recognition of prior learning, which can then be used to gain new qualifications in these relevant areas. Importantly, it will fund 1,200 apprenticeships in those qualifications over the next four years and work with the naval shipbuilding college that is being established in Adelaide to develop and obtain accreditation for a diploma of naval shipbuilding. This will enable South Australians to develop skills that are needed to perform managerial and supervisory roles.

As previously detailed, the Premier of South Australia; the Prime Minister, the Hon. Malcolm Turnbull; and the federal Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon. Christopher Pyne, have formally met to discuss the broad range of defence-related issues and opportunities in South Australia. This meeting with both the Prime Minister and the federal minister is another commitment met by this government as part of its 100-day plan. It really shows that we are trying to establish a grown-up relationship. Rather than fighting, we are looking to actually take a plan to the federal government. That is why the federal government can have confidence going forward: that there is a plan in place that is not haphazard.

We talked yesterday about productivity. To increase productivity, the state requires a plan, and that is what we are setting about doing. In particular, the 1,200 defence industry apprenticeships will be funded as part of our commitment to allocate $100 million to secure the $87 million funding from the federal government's Skilling Australians Fund and will support the creation of an additional 20,800 apprenticeships and traineeships in South Australia. I commend the member for Unley on his work in achieving that for this state.

Under the previous Labor government, we experienced a steady decline in the number of apprenticeships and traineeships in South Australia. That is why it is so important that this program has been set up. The Marshall Liberal government is committed to turning this around, as I have outlined previously, with regard to our apprenticeships so as to arrest any skills shortage that has been allowed to develop in the face of such a tremendous state building opportunity we have before us.

The government is putting in place the skills to establish the capacity for a continuous naval shipbuilding program in our state and ensure that these skills do not have to be imported from other states. We will provide support to the Australian government and key stakeholders to ensure the expansion of the Osborne Naval Shipbuilding Precinct is a success. We will also continue to support local companies and workers to ensure they benefit from the Offshore Patrol Vessel, Future Frigate and Future Submarine programs. An example of this is the recent success of Adelaide's MG Engineering and Whyalla's Ottoway Engineering being awarded contracts by Fincantieri to build cruise ships as part of their global supply chain.

Additionally, from a recent meeting I attended with the members for Waite and Davenport and staff at Flinders University, it is clear that the university itself is trying to develop relationships and cooperation agreements with each of the three tenderers for the Future Frigate Program. It is another example of how local organisations are seeking to ensure they benefit from the shipbuilding program. As stated earlier, the Marshall Liberal government has a commitment to training a skilled workforce in line with defence industry needs, including through apprenticeships, retraining initiatives and also the Defence Industry Employment Program for ex-service personnel.

South Australia's economic future will be significantly bolstered through naval shipbuilding, and we need to maximise local employment opportunities. The initiatives that I have spoken about highlight that the Marshall Liberal government is working hard to ensure that South Australia makes the most of the federal government's $90 billion investment opportunity for all South Australians to benefit. These initiatives are part of our plan to create more jobs. I commend the motion to the house.