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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-05-01 Daily Xml
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Question Time

DEFENCE INDUSTRY

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (14:06): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier advise the house if he is aware why prominent defence company Saab Systems is cutting 30 jobs, 12 per cent of its Adelaide workforce?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (14:06): Yes, I can inform the house about that matter. Saab Systems is obviously a defence company that is based here in South Australia, down in Edinburgh Parks. It is a key player in South Australia's defence landscape and integral to the achievement of our state's defence ambitions. Saab operates at the high end of the defence space, delivering complex systems and engineering projects which are often mission critical for the particular projects in question. In the maritime field, Saab develops and supports the Anzac combat systems and the manoeuvring and platform systems controls of the Collins systems subs. Inland it delivered the Battlefield Command Support System, and it continues to work on a number of sensitive force protection matters.

Saab employs about 340 staff, largely in Adelaide, and the planned workforce reduction represents about 10 per cent of the company's workforce. The reductions flow from restructuring activity as a result of the normal wind-down of projects. For example, Saab Systems' key role in the land and helicopter dock project is nearing completion. The company has provided the combat management system for the two amphibious ships under construction at Williamstown BAE.

Affected staff in relation to the redundancies are predominantly from the largely highly skilled and experienced software engineers, an occupation which is in extraordinarily high demand across the nation. Obviously, we continue to advance South Australia's efforts to attract defence contracts. Defence SA does an extraordinary job in that regard. We have attracted about 25 per cent of the nation's defence procurement. We continue to win projects. Some projects come to an end and others then ramp up. Obviously, this brings into sharp relief the importance of our having a continual pipeline of projects. The Future Submarines project—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Well, you can do something about this. The Future Submarines project, which is a critical project that the current federal Labor government is committed to, has—

Members interjecting:

Ms Chapman: What rubbish! Don't mislead the house!

The SPEAKER: The Premier will be seated. The deputy leader will withdraw that remark forthwith. It is unparliamentary and may only be made by substantive motion.

Ms Chapman: I am happy to withdraw it.

The SPEAKER: I am glad you are happy. Premier.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Thank you. I detect a bruise that I've accidentally touched.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis: A mote in their eye.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: That's right, a mote in their eye.

The SPEAKER: I call the Minister for Transport to order.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Because these are project driven employment outcomes in the defence sector, it is crucial that we have a continuing pipeline. Defence SA is regarded as a national leader in the attraction of defence procurement. Future Submarines, which has many of the high-end jobs that Saab would be pitching into, is precisely the sort of thing that will allow us to sustain and indeed grow jobs into the future.

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