The long-awaited 2016 Defence White Paper has committed the Turnbull government to a “fully costed” Integrated Investment Program for Defence that will see $195 billion spent over the next 10 years on capabilities ranging from submarines and ships to “key enablers” such as infrastructure, logistics, training and IT.
Headlining the capability acquisitions is the federal government’s reaffirmation of a 12-boat Future Submarine program via a “rolling acquisition” program, plus a continuous build program for nine Future Frigates and 12 Offshore Patrol Vessels.
In all, around 25 per cent of Defence capability expenditure through to 2025-26 will be on “maritime operations and anti-submarine warfare”, which will see the acquisition of 15 P-8A Poseidon anti-submarine warfare aircraft (up from eight currently approved) and new ship-based tactical unmanned aircraft.
“Land combat and amphibious warfare” capabilities will account for 18 per cent of capability expenditures. Highlights include early replacement of the Tiger Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter in the mid-2020s, new armed unmanned aircraft, upgrades for the M1A1 Abrams main battle tank, and new combat reconnaissance, infantry fighting and protected mobility vehicles.
In addition to replacing the Tiger helicopters, the White Paper also commits to a “fleet of light reconnaissance and attack helicopters” for Special Forces.
Spending on “strike and air combat” capabilities accounts for 17 per cent of capability expenditures and includes the 72 previously approved F-35A Joint Strike Fighters and 12 EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft, plus new air-to-air, air-to-ground and “long-range strike” and anti-ship missiles.
“Air and sea lift” capabilities will see the “longer-term” consideration of another two extra KC-30A tanker transports (which would take the total fleet to nine), as well as the consideration of “further additional heavy airlift capacity at a later stage”, on top of the eight C-17A transports already acquired.
Another nine per cent of Defence capability expenditure will be on ISR, space, EW and cyber capabilities, including seven MQ-4C Triton unmanned surveillance aircraft and a “new long-range electronic warfare support capability” using up to five modified Gulfstream G550 aircraft.
Finally, around 25 per cent of capability expenditure will be spent on “key enablers” such as upgrades for infrastructure, like bases, weapons and training ranges, IT, simulation, science and technology, and health services.
The 10-year timeframe of the White Paper will see Defence spending increase from $32.2 billion in 2016-17 to a projected $58.7 billion in 2025-26, on the way passing the government’s two per cent of GDP target in financial year 2020-21.
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The Cost of Defence: ASPI Defence Budget Brief 2012-2013Page 50As can be seen, over the past fifteen years the nubmer of civilian senior executives hasincreased by 69% and military star rank officers by 70%. At the same time, the civilianworkforce grew by only 27% and the military workforce by only 11%. Over a similar timeframe, the nubmers of civilian and military senior officers have grown by 94% and 42%respectively. Although the budget papers show a reduction in the nubmer of civilian seniorofficers in Defence and DMO in 2012 13, such predictions have been made in the past andnot occurred.At every senior level in the civilian and military workforce the nubmer of managers andexecutives has increased at a rate well in excess of the growth in the size of the overallworkforce. However, as might be expected, the fastest rate of increase has occurred at thelevel of Deputy Secretary and 3 star military officer (Table 2.5.12) where much of the growthis very recent, including as a result of the 2007 Defence Management Review.P54Third, the actual remuneration of civilian personnel has increased much more quickly thanfor the military workforce, in part, through the level enrichment’ shown in Table 2.5.13.(Civilian senior officers make up 28% of the civilian workforce while military senior officersonly account for less than 3%.
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